The Nightmare Before Christmas
by ChocolateChip03
Summary: It was supposed to be a simple trip to the mall with the Hardys. But when tragedy strikes, the Hardys may have to put their vacation aside and solve this case before it takes the life of one of their loved ones. First fanfic, so please be gentle.
1. Chapter 1

It was a few weeks before Christmas and the Hardys were doing their annual Christmas shopping. Frank and Nancy Hardy, who had been married for almost 5 years and their adorable 3-year-old daughter, Chloe Hardy, were meeting Frank's brother Joe and his wife Vanessa for lunch at the mall.

"I just love this atmosphere. The giggling children, the shy couples, and the smell of Christmas cookies. Don't you?" said Nancy while glancing at Frank.

"Yeah, it gives everyone a chance to just be free of responsibilities for awhile," sighed Frank while simultaneously glancing down at the three year old holding his hand and staring at all of the decorations, completely awed.

The happy trio was on their way to the food court where Joe and Vanessa were already waiting for them. In fact, Frank could see Joe's blonde hair from where he was standing. As they were making their way there, Chloe's wandering eyes fell on a stuffed unicorn that was sitting in the window of a toy store. Her eyes lit up.

"Daddy," she said excitedly while tugging on Frank's hand, "can I get the pwetty unicorn?" pointing to the toy in the window.

Frank and Nancy looked at each other. Frank looked ready to give in to the puppy eyes that Chloe had mastered while Nancy was clearly against the idea of getting another toy for her, mainly due to the fact that their shopping bags mainly consisted of similar toys.

Nancy looked down at the little girl and gently said "Sweetie you already have so many toys and you will probably get a lot more from Santa Claus."

"But mommy, I really want the unicorn. It's pink and purple and sparkly and we can be best friends," Chloe whined.

Nancy was about to say something but Frank beat her to it.

"Alright sunshine, let's go get that unicorn." Frank said, smiling at the cuteness of his little girl.

Nancy rolled her eyes but was smiling because she knew that Frank didn't have the heart to say no to his little princess. Chloe was after all a daddy's girl.

They decided that Frank and Chloe would go into the store to get the unicorn and Nancy would go on over to the food court and meet up with Joe and Vanessa.

As Frank walked into the store, hand in hand with Chloe, he noticed that there were only two other customers and the salesman in the store. This somewhat surprised him but he figured it was only because of the fact that this was a much smaller store in comparison to the others.

Chloe picked out the unicorn she wanted and ran back to Frank jumping up and down, holding the unicorn to her chest.

"Look daddy, isn't is pwetty?"

Frank just smiled at her cuteness and nodded in agreement.

"I'm gonna name her Rainbow!" Chloe exclaimed jumping with excitement.

"That's great Sunshine. Make sure you don't drop it." Frank called as Chloe bounded around the rest of the store while talking to her unicorn.

Everything seemed perfect at that moment. But perfection never seems to last for the Hardys.

Just as Frank was about to hand the money to the salesman, he felt the cold barrel of a gun on his neck.

"Get down on your knees and put your hands behind your head," said a menacing voice.

As Frank kneeled down, he realized that the two customers in the store were actually the ones holding the guns. One was holding him and the salesman at gunpoint and the other one dragged a frightened Chloe over to Frank.

"Daddy!" Chloe cried

"Don't worry baby, daddy's here," Frank said as Chloe landed next to him.

"Get that kid to shut up or I'll do it myself," one of the masked men said.

The one to hold Frank at gunpoint crouched down to Chloe's height and tried to grab the unicorn that she was clutching to her chest.

"No, it's mine!" Chloe cried indignantly, biting the gunman's hand.

"Stupid brat." The masked man slapped Chloe away and she fell back. This made Frank seethe with rage.

No one hurt his baby girl. Before he could clearly think, he had tackled the man and was holding him down by the neck and threw blind punches into his face.

What he did forget however was that his partner was armed and suddenly, Frank felt a sharp pain in his back, shoulder, and side. After that, all he heard was Chloe's bloodcurdling scream.

"DADDY!"

The two gunmen ran off as soon as the first one got out from under Frank.

Chloe ran over to Frank and kept talking to him, trying to make him get up. As a three-year-old, the sound of gunfire and the sight of blood truly terrified her.

"Go…t-to…m-m-mommy, hu-hurry." Frank gasped out in pain.

Chloe ran to the food court as fast as she could on her tiny legs. She caught sight of her Uncle Joe at the table and ran over to him.

"Uncle Joe Uncle Joe, daddy hurt daddy hurt," sobbed Chloe.

"Wait what do you mean sweetie?"

By then, Nancy and Vanessa also joined them.

"Chloe what's wrong? Where is daddy?" Nancy asked frantically.

Chloe was sobbing her eyes out so it was hard for her to form coherent words so she simply grabbed her mommy's hand and dragged her to the store. Joe and Vanessa were fast on their heels.

When they entered the store, Nancy's heart dropped.

On the floor was a pale and unconscious Frank, covered in blood with a large pool of blood surrounding him.

"FRANK!"

She quickly knelt down next to him and checked for a pulse. She found one but it was very faint.

"Frank wake up please Frank. Stay with me ok? Please stay with me." Nancy sobbed. She was dimly aware of Joe kneeling down next to her and was using his jacket to try and stop the blood flow. He yelled at Vanessa to take Chloe away and call an ambulance.

"Don't worry Frank, you'll be ok. Help is coming. Just please stay with me." Nancy begged.

Distantly, Nancy could here the sirens of the ambulance approaching. She just continued to hold Frank's hand and prayed for him to be okay.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hi guys! Here is the second chapter to the story. As you know, this is my first story and I would love to get feedback. Tell me how you like it, what else I should add, and anything else you can think of. Also please review! Thanks!**

The paramedics and police arrived so quickly it made Nancy's head spin. The medics quickly pushed past her and Joe and began stabilizing Frank.

"We lost his pulse, begin CPR" one paramedic, Sarah, as her uniform stated, yelled.

Nancy let out a fearful sob and leaned into Joe, watching as the paramedics tried to revive Frank. Joe quietly put his arm around her shoulder and silently comforted her, rapid tears streaming down his face as he prayed for his older brother to be okay.

He turned to Vanessa but he saw her right outside the store trying to calm down the distraught three year old who wanted to see her daddy. He was thankful that Chloe did not have to see her brave and strong father in such a vulnerable position.

"We've got his pulse back. Let's move him before we lose it again" Sarah stated.

Nancy went weak with relief and knelt down next to Frank's unconscious body. She held his hand as he was strapped down to a stretcher and moved into the awaiting ambulance.

"I'm sorry ma'am, there is no room in the ambulance." One paramedic told her.

Nancy was about to say something but Joe quickly pulled her back and said that they can follow the ambulance. She agreed and she, Joe, Vanessa, and Chloe made their way to the car.

During the drive there, Chloe sobbed into her mommy's arms, begging for her daddy to come back. This brought tears to Nancy's eyes as she held her trembling daughter tight in her arms and slowly rocked her back and forth, whispering comforting words in her ear.

The group quickly got to the hospital and met up with Fenton and Laura Hardy. Vanessa had called them as soon as they got in the car and told them about what had happened.

"Have you heard anything?" Nancy asked shakily, fearing the worst.

"They took him into surgery as soon as they got here. They haven't told us anything since." Fenton gently told her as Laura pulled the trembling woman into her arms.

"Guys, how did this happen?" Fenton inquired.

"We don't know dad. According to Nancy, Chloe and Frank went into a toy store to get a unicorn for her while Nancy joined us at the food court. Nancy and Vanessa went to the ladies room and I was sitting at the table waiting for everyone to come back. The next thing I knew, Chloe came running over, bawling her eyes out, and was saying that Frank was hurt. The girls came back just in time to hear that and we all ran to the store and saw Frank lying on the floor, unconscious and covered in blood. We tried to stop the blood flow and soon after, the paramedics arrived. " Joe explained. He soothingly rubbed Chloe's back, who had fallen asleep on Joe's shoulder, exhausted from crying.

After listening to Joe's story and knowing that only Chloe could tell them what really happened, the family sat down in the waiting room and waited for the doctors to come tell them some news. No one wanted to interrogate a traumatized three year old about how her father was shot three times.

Several hours later….

It had been over 5 hours. Yet, there was still no news on Frank. Chloe was fast asleep on Nancy's lap, clutching her new unicorn tight to her chest. Fenton and Joe had gone down to the cafeteria a few minutes ago to get some food for everyone, Vanessa had gone to the ladies room, and Laura was sitting next to her, offering silent comfort.

Nancy had tried falling asleep many times but every time she closed her eyes, all she saw was Frank covered in blood, his body cold and dead to the world.

She was taken out of her thoughts by Joe and Fenton approaching, a steaming cup of coffee in Joe's hand waiting for her.

Just as she was about to take a sip, Chloe stirred in her lap. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand and sat down next to Nancy, hugging her unicorn next to her.

"Is daddy ok?" Chloe asked, her big brown eyes wide with fear and worry.

"We don't know yet sweetie, but I'm sure he will be ok." Nancy said, trying to convince herself as well as her daughter.

Fenton sat down next to Chloe while Joe crouched down in front of her.

"Hey kiddo, is that your new unicorn?" Fenton asked quietly.

Chloe simply nodded.

"What's her name?"

"Rainbow" came the sullen reply.

"Alright Chloe, I need you to look at me. Can you tell me what happened in the store when you and daddy went to get the unicorn?" Fenton gently asked.

Chloe took a shaky breath and tightened her grip on her unicorn before beginning her story.

"Well, me and mommy and daddy were walking and I saw Rainbow in the window. I really really wanted it so I asked mommy and daddy if I could get it. Mommy said that I already have a lot of toys and that Santa would bring me more but I still wanted it. So then daddy said that we could get it. Mommy said that she will go to Uncle Joe and Aunt Nessa and wait while me and daddy went and got my unicorn. We went into the store and I went to pick up Rainbow. I grabbed it and came back to show daddy. He smiled and I went to go look around some more and see Rainbow's other friends. Then when I turned around, I saw daddy sitting on his knees and his hands were on his head. Then a big mean man came and grabbed my arm and dragged me towards daddy. I was really scared but then daddy didn't look scared so I couldn't be scared either. The big mean man tried to grab my unicorn. But it was my unicorn and he didn't ask nicely so I bit his hand and he pushed me down. When I got up, I saw daddy hitting the mean man. Daddy is really big and strong and he's my hero. Then after that, big mean man number two got a black gun and it made three "poof" noises. Then daddy fell down and the mean men ran away. I-I tired to get daddy to get up b-but he-he said to g-go to mom-my. So I ran to mommy and came back with her. But then daddy was asleep. Mommy and Uncle Joe tried to wake him up but he kept sleeping. Will daddy wake up?" Chloe asked tearfully, ending her story with heart aching sobs.

"Of course he will pumpkin." Laura stated, her voice cracking slightly.

Fenton was about to ask another question but was interrupted by the arrival of the doctor.

"Who is here for Frank Hardy?" the doctor asked.

"We are. I'm his father Fenton, this is his mother Laura, his wife Nancy, brother Joe, sister-in-law Vanessa, and daughter Chloe."

"And this is Rainbow!" Chloe happily said, gesturing to her unicorn.

The group quietly chuckled, happy that the little girl could easily be sidetracked so that her worry for Frank would decrease.

"How is Frank?" Nancy asked fearing for her husband's safety.

The doctor, Doctor Jones as his coat said, took a deep breath before beginning.

"I'm not going to lie Mrs. Hardy. It's not very good. Frank was shot three times as you probably already saw. He was hit in his back, his side, and his shoulder. The bullet in his shoulder grazed his carotid artery. The one in his back punctured his lung, and the one in his side heavily damaged his right kidney. All three of these wounds caused a lot of blood loss. We nearly lost him on the operating table several times. His heart stopped twice but we were able to bring him back. We managed to remove the bullets, but we could not save his kidney."

"You removed his kidney?" Nancy asked in disbelief.

"Don't worry, Frank is a healthy young man and he can live comfortably with one kidney. We managed to fix his punctured lung but he still has some difficulty breathing so we have him on oxygen just as a precaution."

The doctor waited for everyone to process this information. This was the part of the job he absolutely hated. He hated how he had to tell family members that their loved one may not survive.

"Will he be okay?" Joe asked tentatively.

"Due to the severe blood loss and the damage to his organs, nothing is predictable at the moment. He is currently unconscious and if he does not show signs of waking up in a few days, then he may slip into a coma. Frank is still in critical condition so I must advise you to prepare yourselves for the worst."

The doctor saw the horror and aguish in the eyes of the Hardy family. He hated how he was the cause of it. He quietly excused himself and told the family that a nurse would come get them when they could see Frank.

After the doctor left, Nancy couldn't take it anymore. She collapsed into Vanessa's arms sobbing. Vanessa whispered comforting words in her ear as she tried to calm the distraught woman and tried to keep tears from falling out of her own eyes. As she looked around, she saw that Laura and Fenton were hugging and crying into each other's shoulders. Joe was holding Chloe and had tears streaming down his face as he tried to calm the little girl down.

"It's n-not fair. W-why can't we enjoy a happy life together?" Nancy sobbed.

"I know Nan. But please calm down. You know Frank's a fighter. He will make it and he will be ok." Vanessa said confidently.

The family stayed like that for a while, comforting each other. Soon a nurse came and told them that they could see Frank in the ICU but only 1 visitor at a time. They decided that Nancy should be the one to see Frank first. Vanessa and Laura took Chloe down to the gift shop to get her mind off of things. They did not want her seeing Frank in such a delicate position.

Nancy walked down the hall towards the ICU and stopped in front of Frank's room. Her hand shook as she reached for the doorknob and slowly opened the door.

Somewhere miles away from Bayport and the Hardys…

"Did you get it?" asked a man in a black suit, shadows and a dim light hiding his face.

"No, Mike here shot the Hardy boy before we could get our hands on it," said one of the men in ski masks.

The man in the suit stared down at Mike. His dark eyes so fierce, it seemed like they were piercing his soul.

"Well, Mike would you like to tell me why you shot Frank Hardy?"

"It was an accident. He attacked Ben and I shot without thinking." Mike said, cowering from the man in fear.

"He was a vital part of the plan and now its ruined."

"I'm sorry! I will fix this just please give me another chance." Mike begged.

"Not yet. We have to make sure he will wake up. We cannot continue without Frank Hardy alive and well.

Back at the hospital…

Fenton and Joe sat next to each other each in their own thoughts.

"Joe," Fenton began, "Chloe said that those men tried to take her unicorn. What would they want with a stuffed animal?"

"I don't know Dad. That's got me stumped too."

As father and son continued to think, they did not notice a man hiding in the shadows away from sight, listening to every word they said, a sinister smile creeping upon the man's hidden face.

AN: Also, I am sorry if some of the medical information is not 100% accurate. I only used that to make this story as suspenseful as possible. Let me know if you have any other ideas I could incorporate! :)


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Hi guys! Thanks so much for those awesome reviews. I will try to update at much as possible. Please continue to review and let me know how you like it.**

Nancy slowly turned the doorknob and entered Frank's room. As soon as she entered, her heart nearly stopped. Frank was hooked up to several machines; he had two IV's in each hand, and had an oxygen mask on his face. His face was so pale he almost matched the color of the sheets. Nancy quietly sat down next to him and grasped his hand is both of hers.

"Frank, can you hear me?" Nancy asked quietly.

"Please wake up for me Frank. The doctors are saying that you might not make it but I know you will. You're a fighter Frank. Please wake up. I need you, Chloe needs you. She is heartbroken without you. You need to wake up, give her a big hug, and read her favorite bedtime story to her. Please wake up Frank. I can't live without you." By the end of Nancy's request, she had tears streaming down her face so rapidly it was blurring her vision. Nancy stopped crying when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw the sad face of Joe. She couldn't hold it in any longer and began sobbing into Joe's shirt. Joe comfortingly rubbed her back and tried calming her down.

"He has to be ok." Nancy cried.

"He will be Nan. Frank won't leave you or Chloe or any of us. He knows that we all need him. You'll see. He will be alright." Joe said soothingly.

While Joe and Nancy were visiting Frank, Fenton decided to check on Laura, Vanessa, and Chloe. Ever since Chloe told them about what had happened, he couldn't help but think that something was just not right. He caught sight of them in the cafeteria. As he approached them, he couldn't help but smile. Chloe was munching happily on a Snickers bar and was trying to feed some to her unicorn. He still found it odd how toddlers loved talking to inanimate objects. He shook his head, smiling. Vanessa and Laura were quietly talking over some coffee and as Fenton approached, Laura looked up and smiled at him. He caught sight of the devastated look in her eyes and truly saw how worried she was about her eldest child. At that moment, Fenton realized that Laura was an extremely strong woman. She was always hiding her fears behind an impassive face and tried to remain strong for her family, never voicing her true concerns. He really was lucky to have such a great woman in his life.

"Hey Fenton. Is everything alright?" Laura asked.

"Yes, Nancy and Joe are with Frank so I decided to come make sure you three were doing ok."

"Look Grandpa, Rainbow loves chocolate!" Chloe exclaimed happily.

"That's great kiddo." Fenton said smiling. "Vanessa, would you mind keeping in eye on Chloe while Laura and I talk for a minute?"

"Sure thing."

Fenton pulled Laura to the side and quietly talked to her, making sure that Chloe could not here.

"Laura, I think that we should take Chloe home. I feel like seeing Frank in the condition he is in will scare her even more. Vanessa can stay here with Nancy and Joe. They won't want to leave Frank right now."

"That's a good idea. Let's go see how Frank is first and then we can leave." Laura said, desperate to see that her baby was okay.

As Fenton, Laura, Vanessa, and Chloe made their way back to the waiting room, Chloe's eyes began to droop. The day was finally catching up to her. Fenton noticed how she was dragging her feet while she held his hand and he pulled her up into his arms. Chloe adjusted herself in her grandfather's arms and fell asleep on his shoulder.

They met up with Nancy and Joe as they entered the waiting room. Nancy's red and swollen eyes fell upon Chloe's sleeping form and she smiled lightly. She gently pulled her from Fenton's arms and held her while she slept so that Fenton and Laura could visit Frank.

Joe noticed Rainbow hanging limply from Chloe's hand and gently pulled it out of her grasp, careful not to wake her up. He began checking it all around.

"What's wrong Joe?" Nancy asked

"Something just doesn't feel right about this unicorn. Dad and I were talking and we found it weird that the robbers wanted Chloe's unicorn. Maybe they hid something in it."

By now, both Nancy and Vanessa were staring at the unicorn intently while Joe continued searching for some sort of opening or some type of clue.

Joe continued searching but stopped when he heard his parents approaching. He looked up and saw that his dad had a broken look in his eyes while his mother had tears streaming down her face. Quietly getting up, he wrapped his arms around his mom and held her as she cried.

Unknown Location…

Mike, Ben, and the man in the suit, Boss, were sitting around a table talking.

"We need that toy." Mike explained.

"How are we supposed to get it? It is being held by a little girl who bit my hand and whose dad bruised my eye." Ben snarled.

"Quiet, both of you." Boss said angrily.

"I will get it. I can sneak in discreetly and take it while no one is watching. The Hardys are probably too worried about Frank Hardy to pay any attention anyways."

"But what about the plan? You said we need Frank Hardy for the plan."

"We do. That's why we will force him to wake up, whether he is ready to or not."

Ben and Mike looked at "Boss" like he was utterly insane.

Boss went to a cupboard and pulled out a small vile with a blue liquid in it.

"This is how we will wake him up." Boss said, swirling the liquid in the vile.

"What is that?" Mike asked.

"This, dearest Mikey, is something I invented called Formula X. It can wake up any unconscious person in a matter of minutes, but not without a scare first. I had some of the world's best scientists and chemists working on this for almost 3 years. This is how I will extract my revenge." Boss said, laughing manically.

"I will inject this into Frank Hardy's bloodstream and soon he will wake up. Everything will seem perfect for a bit. But then, Frank Hardy's world will come crashing down." Boss smiled crazily, happy that he will get his revenge.

Back at the hospital…

Fenton, Laura, and Chloe had gone home and Nancy, Joe, and Vanessa remained at the hospital. Joe was still pondering about how the attack on Frank and Chloe's unicorn was connected. There was something that just was not fitting together.

Nancy was sitting with Frank, holding his hand and running her other hand through his dark brown locks, comforting him in his favorite way.

 _Flashback…_

 _It had been a long day for Frank. He and Joe had been trying to solve a kidnapping mystery for almost a month and it was starting to take a toll on him. He had spent a lot of time trying to track him down via the Internet and was finally getting a breakthrough. Joe was having a lunch date with Vanessa and his father was out of town on business. He decided to pursue this lead himself. He grabbed his jacket and made his way out to his car. He followed the directions on his phone that ended up leading him to an abandoned warehouse. He quietly made his way out of the car and went around towards the back entrance. He quietly opened the door and made his way inside. After checking out the warehouse downstairs, he made his way up. He checked one room at a time and finally made it to a room at the end of the hallway. He gently pushed it open and entered the room. The next thing he knew he was met with three big guys with huge fists. Frank quickly jumped into action and for a while, the four threw punch after punch towards each other. One of the guys through a hard punch to his ribs and Frank felt a crack. His vision swam and this gave the other two guys a chance to pounce on him. Thinking quickly, he pulled out his knife from where it was strapped to his ankle and stabbed one guy in the leg with it. The other two rushed to their fallen comrade and tried to help him. Frank used this distraction to escape out the window and ended up rolling down a large hill. When he came to a stop, his whole body was pulsing with pain. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and pressed number one, speed-dialing Joe._

" _Hey Frank."_

" _Joe, help…" Frank gasped out before everything went black._

 _Some hours later…_

 _Frank slowly opened his eyes and was greeted with a bright light and pain. He groaned._

" _Frank! You're awake!" he heard a voice call out._

 _As the grogginess started to fade he could make out two shapes leaning over him. As his vision cleared he saw it was his brother Joe and his wife Nancy._

" _Oh thank god you're ok." Nancy cried with relief._

" _Yeah bro, you had us scared for a bit there." Joe pitched in._

" _How…" Frank started._

"… _did I find you? I just tracked the GPS on your phone and found you at the bottom of a hill completely knocked out. Why would you try and follow that lead on your own? You know how dangerous these people are. You were lucky they weren't armed." Joe said, angry with Frank for doing something so foolish._

" _Do you know what those guys did to you Frank? You have three broken ribs, a concussion, and a fractured knee!" Nancy cried._

" _Is that why I am in pain?" Frank asked, still somewhat woozy on pain medication._

 _Joe and Nancy looked at each other for a second before bursting out laughing._

" _Go to sleep Frank, you need it." Nancy said as she sat down next to him and started running her hand through his hair. She was rewarded with a small smile as he slowly fell back asleep._

 _End of Flashback…_

Nancy remembered how she reacted when Joe called her, telling her that Frank was in the hospital. She rushed over and when she saw Frank, covered in cuts in bruises with some broken bones, but otherwise unharmed she felt relieved. She wished that it were the same scenario here too. Why couldn't Frank just have a couple of broken bones instead of possibly fatal bullet wounds?

She continued running her hand through Frank's hair in hopes that maybe he will wake up to her touch. She and Frank had been through so much together, that she just could not live without him.

 **AN: Just to be clear, I am trying to include various points of view in this story. I want to include Frank/Nancy, Joe/Vanessa, and Fenton/Laura moments. Chloe will also have her adorable moments every now and then as well! :) Once again, please let me know how you like it and review, review, and review.**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Thank you once again for such great reviews. I will try my hardest to update regularly. Please keep reviewing and let me know how you like it. :)**

Mike, Ben and Boss were creating their next strategy. However, Ben and Mike constantly wondered what prompted their boss to go after Frank Hardy.

Boss also knew that his two henchmen wanted to know why he wanted Frank Hardy to pay. Maybe it was time to tell them why. Maybe then, they will understand.

"Boys, I think you need to know why I want Frank Hardy to suffer."

Mike and Ben were both stunned, but they listened attentively.

"This happened three years ago. I had a family. My beautiful wife Beverly, my six-year-old son Bobby, and my three-year-old little princess Nicole." A single tear slipped out of the corner of his eye.

"I had a wonderful life. I was a very successful businessman with a wonderful family. But then, one day my life turned upside down and it stayed that way. I suffered a huge loss in business and nearly lost everything. But I managed to pull through it. During the course of my financial recovery, I was pulled into various illegal things. It was the only thing that kept my family going. I didn't tell them what I was doing because I knew that they wouldn't approve of it. But I had no choice. Things were working out well. My family did not know about what I was doing and neither did the police. But then one day, I stumbled upon something I wasn't supposed to. The people that were giving me orders ordered me to kidnap a young girl for ransom from a rich philanthropist. They threatened to kill my family if I didn't cooperate. I kidnapped the girl and was holding her hostage in an abandoned warehouse. It had been two days and my superiors were coming in to get the girl. But the next thing I knew, the warehouse door was being broken down and Frank Hardy barged in with a handful of cops. His brother came around the back but that didn't matter. Frank Hardy pointed his gun at me and told me to stand down. I raised my hands and got down on my knees. Two cops arrested me and Frank Hardy brought the girl out of the basement where she was being held and took her outside. I tried to tell him that my family would die if he takes the girl. But he didn't listen. He took the girl and I was arrested. My family was killed; I was sent pictures of their dead bodies. But I managed to escape jail, and I created a new identity for myself. Before, I was James Cortez, a successful businessman; now I am Andrew Chase, a wealthy man with a goal, avenge the death of his family by making Frank Hardy suffer. I won't harm his family because they do not deserve my wrath. But I will make Frank Hardy beg for death after I am done with him." Andrew finished, his eyes gleaming with rage and determination.

Back at the Hardy house…

Fenton, Laura, and Chloe, who was asleep on Fenton's shoulder finally made it home. Laura quietly unlocked the front door and Fenton slipped in after her, taking Chloe into their room and he gently tucked her into bed. He couldn't help but smile at the sight of the adorable little girl who was sleeping with her thumb in her mouth. He gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead before turning off the light and joining Laura in the kitchen.

Laura was quietly making coffee in the kitchen, deep in thought. All she could see was her baby unconscious and in pain. Every time she closed her eyes, all she could see was Frank, his eyes closed and his body cold and dead. She was shaken out of her thoughts when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Fenton standing there, his eyes also watery, tears threatening to fall. This did it. Laura's brave face façade crumbled and she let out heart wrenching sobs into Fenton's shirt. Fenton held her tightly in his arms and let his own tears fall as well. Both parents were silently praying for the angels to watch over their son and bring him back to his family.

At the hospital…

Nancy was sitting outside of Frank's room with Joe and Vanessa waiting for the doctor to finish checking on Frank. The doctor stepped out and the trio stood up.

"Is everything alright Doctor?" Joe asked.

"I'm afraid Frank is still in the same condition. There hasn't been much improvement yet. However, if he does show signs of waking up in the next couple of days, there is a high chance that he will fully recover." The doctor stated, trying to give the distraught family some hope.

The three Hardys were upset when they learned that Frank's condition had not improved but they still tried to keep their hope up.

"Nan, why don't you sit with Frank for a bit?" Joe asked.

"Actually, I was going to call Laura and see how Chloe was doing. You go on ahead. I'll catch up in a minute." Nancy walked off before Joe could say anything else.

Vanessa, however, saw right through to Nancy and silently went after her. She saw Nancy slip into the ladies room and followed. As she was about to open the door, she heard loud sobs coming from inside. Trying to hide her own tears, she went inside and quickly pulled Nancy into her arms.

"P-Please Van, tell me h-he's going to be alright."

"Shh shh. He will be fine. You know that Frank will never leave you. You'll see, Frank will be alright and then we can all spend Christmas and New Year's together like we always have." Vanessa said, desperately trying to keep her voice from cracking. Her family was broken and suffering. She also knew that if Frank didn't make it, then the Hardy family will never be the same; especially Nancy, Chloe, and Joe.

In Frank's room…

Joe slowly entered Frank's room and made his way to his brother's side. He sat down in the chair next to the bed and grasped Frank's hand.

"Hey bro, you there? Listen, you have to wake up ok. We all need you to wake up. Nancy and Chloe are a wreck without you and the rest of us aren't doing much better. I know that you're still in there. Please Frank, wake up. Remember what we promised Chloe? We promised her that we would let her say hi to Santa Claus on Christmas Eve when he brings her presents remember? You are going to sneak her downstairs towards the Christmas tree and I am going to dress up as Santa and eat the cookies and milk. I need you there with me to we can keep our promise to Chloe. Please bro, I need you. I need you so much." Joe begged, tears leaking out of his eye as he finished speaking.

Frank did not move an inch.

But this did not discourage Joe. He continued quietly speaking to him and continued to hold his hand until he heard the door open. He turned and saw Nancy and Vanessa standing there, both with red-rimmed eyes. He gave them a half-hearted smile and stood up. He walked over to Nancy and gave her a tight hug.

"He'll come back to us," Joe whispered in Nancy's ear.

Joe and Vanessa left the room, giving Nancy some alone time with Frank.

Once Joe and Vanessa were away from Nancy and Frank, Vanessa pulled Joe aside.

"Joe, don't you think that Nancy is acting a bit different? I mean I know it's normal to be this worried but I've always seen Nancy be so strong for everyone else. I just can't help but think that maybe there is something else she is hiding from us. We all know that Frank has been in tough situations before. But never has Nancy been this distraught."

Joe thought about this for a minute. Then he shook his head.

"Van, you're just being paranoid. Frank's literally in between life and death. Of course it's going to affect Nancy much more than usual."

"Maybe you're right." Vanessa conceded, though she was still a bit suspicious.

Joe just gave her a small smile and led her out towards the waiting room.

Unknown Location…

Andrew Chase had left the room after he told his story to Mike and Ben. But what he did not tell them was that his plan was in fact, much more sinister than he explained.

An evil grin came upon his lips as he imagined Frank Hardy suffering the way he had. He let out a maniacal laugh when he imagined Frank Hardy just begging for death. Yet he had to wait. He had to wait for the perfect time. Fortunately, it was coming right around the corner.

He slowly left the warehouse and walked up to his car. He put the gear in drive and drove towards Bayport, towards the hospital, and towards his revenge.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Hi guys, sorry for this late update. I will try to update as much as possible and not keep you guys waiting for too long. Anyways, here is the next chapter and I hope you like it. Please review, review, and review.**

At the hospital…

Andrew exited his car and quietly made his way to the hospital entrance. He was pleased to see that no one was in the lobby. He quietly made his way up to the ICU. Before turning into the hallway, he noticed male nurse with his back to Andrew. He quickly snuck behind him and hit him with a tranquilizer dart. He dragged the unconscious nurse into the men's restroom and emerged a few minutes later, wearing the nurse's clothes. He quickly made his way down to Frank Hardy's room and saw that no one was in there. He quickly snuck in and injected Formula X into Frank's IV. He heard footsteps approaching and a look of panic came on his face. He quickly looked around and hid in the bathroom just as the door opened. He saw the pretty strawberry blonde girl, Frank's wife, he assumed, come in and she sat down next to him. An evil smile came upon Andrew's lips.

"Perfect. Now his wife can see Frank one more time before he is all mine."

Nancy sat next to Frank for a few minutes while Andrew stared at her through the crack in the door.

Then, all chaos erupted.

Frank convulsed violently on the bed and Nancy began to panic. She yelled for the doctors to come. Frank's brother Joe and Joe's wife, Vanessa ran in after the doctors. The doctors tried to stabilize him and tried to get him to stop seizing.

Suddenly, Frank's heart monitor flatlined and he collapsed motionless on the bed.

The doctors quickly pushed Nancy, Joe and Vanessa, who were all in shock aside, and jumped into action.

A nurse began CPR on Frank while the other doctors tried reviving Frank.

Nancy was trembling like a leaf in the wind in Joe's arms, terribly frightened for love's safety. Joe was staring at Frank's pale and unconscious face in shock while Vanessa stood there, her hands over her mouth with her eyes watering.

"He's crashing! Get the cart in here!" a doctor yelled.

The Hardy family watched in disbelief as the doctor placed the defibrillator paddles on Frank's chest.

"Clear!" the doctor yelled, as Frank's chest jerked up with electricity. Nancy cried out in horror and anguish as Joe silently wrapped his arms tightly around her.

The doctor shocked Frank again, a third time, and a fourth time. Finally one doctor found Frank's pulse.

"I've got his pulse!"

This got the hospital staff moving again. They got Frank's pulse back to normal and managed to get him breathing again. Finally, after several tense seconds, the doctors looked towards the three Hardys and nodded, letting them know that Frank was going to be ok.

Nancy nearly collapsed with relief and Joe let out a relieved laugh.

"Will he wake up soon?" Nancy asked.

"Yes, he should wake up in the next 24 hours." The doctor said, happy that this happy family would continue to remain whole.

"Thank you. Thank you so much." Vanessa said, tears of relief falling out of her eyes.

Andrew smiled wickedly in his hiding spot.

"Finally, Frank Hardy will be mine." He whispered to himself.

He watched as the doctors and nurses slowly trickled out.

A nurse went up the Hardys and told them that they needed to leave.

"Please, we promise we won't get in the way. Can we stay?" Nancy asked, not wanting to leave Frank's side for even a minute.

"I'm sorry ma'am. But we need to make sure that Frank is doing all right and we can't do that with all these people in here. It will be only for a couple of minutes and then you can come right back in." a nurse said.

Nancy, Joe, and Vanessa reluctantly left the room and slowly, the doctors and nurses began to leave as well. Seeing the opportunity, Andrew quickly left his hiding spot and walked out of Frank's room. He made his way back down the hall and out the hospital doors. When he sat down in his car, he let out a maniacal laugh.

"24 hours Frank Hardy. Then you will be mine."

At the Hardy house…

Fenton and Laura were awfully quiet for quite a while. Fenton had informed Chief Collig of the shooting and the police were currently investigating it.

Suddenly, Fenton's cell phone rang. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Joe calling.

"Hello?"

"Hey Dad, its me."

"Yes Joe, is there any news on Frank? How is he? Is he alright?"

Joe patiently explained everything that had happened and waited for his dad to process everything.

"Will he wake up? Will he be ok?"

"Yeah. The doctors said that he should wake up in the next 24 hours. He's gonna be ok dad." Joe said, his voice filled with relief.

"Thank goodness! Ok Joe, you keep me updated on everything that happens there ok?"

"Yeah I will dad. By the way, how is Chloe?"

"She is doing fine. She is asleep right now."

"Good, she's had a long day. Anyways, Dad I will call back soon ok?"

"Ok. Take care son." Fenton hung up.

Laura stood next to Fenton, her eyes wide with fear and question.

"What happened Fenton? Is Frank alright?"

"Yeah Laura, the doctors said that he should wake up in the next 24 hours. They almost lost him for a minute but he is alright."

Laura had tears of joy streaming down her face, happy that her baby was going to be alright. The two hugged and cried together, overjoyed that their family would be able to stay together.

Suddenly they heard crying coming from their bedroom.

"Chloe!" Laura cried, bolting towards the room, Fenton fast on her heels.

When they entered the room, they saw the three year old on the ground, crying.

"Chloe, sweetie what happened? Are you okay sweetie?" Laura asked, frantically searching her for any injuries.

"I h-had a b-bad d-dream and t-then I f-fell off." Chloe said, crying.

"What happened in your dream sweetie?" Fenton asked gently.

"Well, there were those bad men again but this time, they hurt daddy again and then daddy fell asleep and he didn't wake up. I tried to wake him up a lot but he kept on sleeping. Why wouldn't he wake up?" Chloe cried, tears still streaming down her face.

"Sweetie, look at me. Uncle Joe just called us and said that daddy is going to wake up really soon ok?" Laura said, trying to calm the little girl down.

"Really? Daddy is gonna wake up?" Chloe asked, a big grin creeping up on her face, her large eyes wide with excitement.

"Yes he is little one. Now how about some hot chocolate and cookies?" Fenton said, a small smile on his face.

Chloe nodded in agreement.

"Grandma, I made an oopsy and sat on Rainbow when I fell off the bed." Chloe said sheepishly.

Laura and Fenton looked at each other before bursting out laughing.

"That's ok sweetie. Look, Rainbow is perfectly find." Laura said, holding up the unicorn for Chloe.

The three of them made their way back to the kitchen and Fenton sat Chloe down on the countertop. Chloe crossed her legs together and sat Rainbow down in her lap. Laura pulled out some M&M cookies, Chloe's favorite and poured out some hot chocolate in Chloe's Olaf mug.

Everything was turning out right for the Hardy family. Frank would soon be all right and then, they could celebrate the holidays together, like they always did.

But little did they know, their happiness would not last very long. Soon, a dark shadow would loom over them, and the sun may never shine on them again.

 **AN: There you go guys. I hope you liked this chapter. Once again, I hope the medical information is accurate. I'm sorry if it is not 100% true. Just so you know, what happened to Frank was the "scare" that was mention in a previous chapter. That was what would happen before Formula X came into effect. Hope you liked it and please REVIEW!**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Hi guys! I am so sorry! I actually posted the same story under a different name because I goofed up with my passwords. I am still brand new to Fanfiction so it is taking me some time to understand everything. I am so sorry for this late update. I promise I will try to update as much as possible. Once again, I am sorry for this, it was a pure mistake. Please review and tell me how you like it. REVIEW! :)**

The night has passed without incident. After Frank had coded, Nancy, Joe and Vanessa stayed near him for the remainder of the night. The following morning, Fenton, Laura and Chloe had arrived at the hospital. When they caught sight of the other three, Laura rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Nancy, holding her tight.

"Has he shown any signs waking up yet?" Laura asked.

"No, not yet. But it has been only 10 hours." Nancy said, hope filling her voice.

"Well, Fenton and I will stay here and keep an eye on Frank. The three of you need to go home and shower. You smell disgusting." Laura stated teasingly, wrinkling her nose in a funny way.

The group laughed at Laura's attempt to provide some comic relief.

Chloe went over and tugged on Nancy's hand.

"Mommy, did daddy wake up yet?"

Nancy crouched down and smiled.

"Not yet baby, but the nice doctor said that he would wake up soon."

"Yay! Then me and daddy can go and get Rainbow some new clothes."

Chloe then whispered loudly, "It's not nice for a girl to not wear clothes. Aunt Nessa said so."

The adults turned their heads towards Vanessa who was blushing furiously.

"When did you tell her that Van?" Joe asked, amusement filling his voice.

"A few weeks ago when Nan, Chloe and I went shopping. We stopped in Victoria's Secret for their big sale and Chloe kept staring at the mannequins. Now that I think about it, it might not have been the best idea to take a three-year old into that store." Vanessa said, now thoroughly embarrassed. The Hardy family laughed out loud at Vanessa's discomfort.

Fenton then spoke up. "You three should go home, clean up, and get something to eat."

Nancy looked ready to protest but Laura wouldn't let her speak.

"Nancy, honey you have been here all night; all three of you have been. Frank will be fine for a couple of hours. If he wakes up, we will call you immediately. You all are exhausted and need to get some rest." Laura said firmly, adamant that the three young Hardys get some rest.

Nancy finally nodded, knowing that there was no winning against Laura Hardy in a situation life this.

Nancy, Joe, and Vanessa made their way out of the hospital and towards Joe's car. They drove to the Hardy home in somber silence. The Hardy family had decided to spend the holidays together under one roof. Frank, Nancy, and Chloe had their own house about 5 minutes away from Fenton and Laura's while Joe and Vanessa had an apartment to themselves about ten minutes away in the opposite direction.

As Joe opened the front door, the trio walked in and as they entered the comfortable home, they realized how exhausted they all really were.

"I don't know about you two, but I am going to take a nice hot shower" Nancy said, already dragging her feet up the stairs.

Joe and Vanessa looked at each other, shrugged at each other, and followed Nancy up the stairs.

At the hospital…

Fenton and Chloe were sitting in the waiting room at the hospital. Laura had gone ahead to see Frank and the two were waiting for her to return.

Fenton was watching Chloe as she played with her unicorn while eating a cookie that Laura had baked for her that morning. Watching the child's adorable antics brought a smile to Fenton's face. Their bond was indescribable. Fenton just loved watching the little toddler. She reminded him a lot of Frank to be honest. Fenton remembered a time when Frank was about Chloe's age, maybe a bit older. He tried climbing a tree. Somehow, he had managed to get about half way up the tree before Fenton came out of the house in search of him. When he saw Frank in that tree, Fenton's heart nearly stopped. He carefully called Frank and told him to sit on the branch that was next to him. Frank did so and when he looked down, he looked so happy. Even though he was almost 6 feet up in the air, which, mind you, is very high for a young toddler, he looked so proud of his accomplishment. Frank had a huge grin on his face while Fenton was extremely terrified. He told Frank to hang on and that he was coming up to get him. The next thing he knew, Frank was hanging from the tree upside down by his ankle and was screaming in terror. Fenton rushed forward and positioned himself right underneath Frank. Not a moment too soon, Frank fell. He landed right into Fenton's awaiting arms, knocking the wind out of him. He then stood up, brushed off his clothes, and asked if they could get ice cream. Fenton was astonished at how one minute Frank was screaming his head off while dangling from a tree, and the next minute, he was asking for ice cream, acting as though nothing had happened.

Chloe reminds him so much of Frank. She can be terrified at one moment and be perfectly happy the next. This made Fenton happy. Even though Chloe had seen a lot at her young age, she still was an innocent and happy child inside.

Chloe turned her head towards Fenton and looked at him with big eyes.

"Grandpa, can I get another Snicker?" Chloe asked cutely.

Fenton smiled at her cuteness, but he knew that he couldn't fulfill her request, knowing that Laura and Nancy would not be happy that he was spoiling his granddaughter rotten.

"Sorry, sweetie but Grandma and mommy will be mad at me if I give you another candy bar."

"Please? Pretty please with sprinkles on top?" Chloe asked, her puppy eyes coming out.

Fenton sighed, knowing that he couldn't win against Chloe's big puppy eyes.

"Alright, but don't tell Grandma or mommy ok?"

Chloe nodded eagerly, a huge grin coming on her face.

The two got up and headed towards the cafeteria hand in hand.

Unknown Location…

Andrew exited his car and walked towards the door to the warehouse. He opened the door and went inside.

Mike and Ben stood up from where they were playing cards and looked at him.

Andrew turned around and an evil grin made its way onto his face.

"I gave Frank Hardy a dose of Formula X. Now, the clock is just ticking. Soon he will be awake and I will get my vengeance."

Mike and Ben also smiled dangerously. At least now, they could get a real punching bag. Their boxing bags were all destroyed.

At the hospital…

Nancy, Joe, and Vanessa returned to the hospital soon after Chloe had eaten her Snickers bar.

Nancy looked down at Chloe and noticed some chocolate on the side of her mouth.

"Chloe, were you eating chocolate again?"

Chloe looked up at Fenton and then back at Nancy before shaking her head no.

Nancy rolled her eyes and smiled. She knew that Fenton could never say no to his little grandbaby.

"How's Frank?" Joe asked.

"He's still the same. Your mother is with him at the moment." Fenton said.

Nancy and Joe made their way to Frank's room and met up with Laura.

They opened the door and saw Laura holding Frank's hand, softly talking to him, and trying to hold back tears.

Nancy made her way to Frank's bedside and put her hand on Laura's shoulder. It broke Nancy's heart to see Laura in such a vulnerable condition. The two women quietly wrapped their arms around each other and provided silent comfort.

After a while, Joe and Laura left, leaving Nancy alone with Frank.

Nancy kept looking at the charming face she fell in love with, praying to all things good and evil that she would be able to look at this face for many years to come.

Suddenly, Nancy felt Frank's hand tighten in her hand.

"Frank?" Nancy asked tentatively.

"Can you open your eyes for me? It's me, Nancy. Please Frank?"

Nancy kept talking to Frank, encouraging him to open his eyes.

Slowly but surely, Frank's eyes began to open.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: Hi guys! Here is another chapter. I hope you like it! Please REVIEW, REVIEW, AND REVIEW.

Nancy held her breath as she saw Frank's eyes begin to flutter.

"Frank?" Nancy breathed.

She watched as slowly Frank's eyes began to open. Tears of joy began falling out of her eyes as she watched Frank blink a couple of times, trying to adjust to the light in the room. Not taking her eyes off of Frank, she quietly reached over and pressed the call button, calling the nurse over to the room.

Frank slowly blinked his eyes and saw the beautiful face of his wife in front of him.

"Nan…" Frank whispered, his voice hoarse from lack of use, not to mention the oxygen mask that muffled his voice.

Nancy smiled broadly and gently kissed his forehead. Before she could say anything else, doctors and nurses came into the room and shooed her out of the room so that they could examine Frank. Nancy and Frank locked eyes with each other until the room door closed on Nancy.

Nancy quickly made her way back to the waiting room where the rest of the family was waiting.

"He's awake! He's awake!" Nancy cried, bursting with joy.

The Hardy family cried out in joy and happiness. Fenton and Laura hugged each other tightly, grateful that their son would be okay. Joe and Vanessa kissed happily while Nancy hugged Chloe, tears still streaming down her face.

Chloe looked around, confused.

"Mommy, why are you crying?"

"Baby, these are happy tears. Guess what? Daddy is awake!"

"Really? Daddy is awake!" Chloe shouted, excitedly.

Nancy nodded, a smile appearing on her face. She watched as the little girl jumped around happily in the waiting room, swinging her unicorn around happily. From the corner of her eye, she could see nurses, doctors and other hospital staff members smiling at Chloe's excitement.

After a few minutes, two doctors came into the waiting room.

The Hardys all held their breaths while they waited for the doctors to begin talking. Chloe kept on spinning in a circle with Rainbow.

"Will Frank be okay?" Nancy asked.

The two doctors looked at each other before looking at Nancy.

"Frank will be absolutely fine. He has a long road of recovery ahead of him, but he will pull through. He may have some stiffness in his shoulder and back but some physical therapy will help him out with that." One doctor explained, smiling at the happy family.

Nancy almost collapsed with relief. Frank was going to okay.

"Can we see him?" she asked.

"Yes, in fact, he was asking for you all."

The six Hardys made their way to Frank's room and were happy to see Frank awake. Much more color had returned to his face and the oxygen mask was also removed. He did look like he was in a bit of pain but was still smiling nonetheless.

"Hey. Looks like I took a pretty long nap." Frank said, smiling.

The Hardys laughed at his attempt at humor. Laura and Nancy quickly sat down on each side of him, bombarding him with questions.

"Are you ok?"

"Are you in pain?"

"Should we call a doctor?"

"Do you need something?"

"Do you want some water?"

"Guys!" Frank said loudly, which resulted in him coughing harshly, his repaired lung still healing.

Nancy rubbed his back while they all waited for the coughing fit to pass.

"You ok?"

Frank smiled and nodded.

"Now to answer your questions, I am ok, I am in some pain but that is because I did not want any pain medication right now. There is no need to call a doctor, I do not need anything, but some water would be great.

Laura reached over to the bedside table and filled up a glass of water before helping Frank drink it.

"Thanks mom."

"Your welcome" Laura said, while running her hand through Frank's thick brown locks.

Fenton sat down in the chair next to the bed before talking to Frank.

"How are you doing now son?"

"Better then before. It still hurts to move, laugh, talk, and breathe deeply but I guess it could have been worse."

Joe stood next to Frank's bed and clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"You gave us a real scare there big bro. But I'm happy your okay." Joe said, smiling.

Chloe couldn't hold in her excitement any more and ran up to the bed.

"DADDY! You're awake!" Chloe said excitedly, trying to climb on the bed.

Frank smiled fondly at his little princess.

Fenton helped Chloe onto the bed and Chloe snuggled into Frank's side. Frank wrapped his arms tightly around her, not caring about the pain that shot through his body at moving so much.

"I love you so much Sunshine. I promise I will never let anything happen to you." Frank whispered in to her hair.

"I love you too Daddy!"

Chloe hugged Frank a little too tightly and white hot pain tore through Frank.

Frank grunted in pain and Nancy gently pulled Chloe back.

"Baby, daddy is hurt so you have to be gentle with him ok?"

Chloe nodded, her eyes wide with concern.

Vanessa got up and took Chloe out of the room, stopping to give Frank a quick peck on the cheek.

"I'll take Chloe down to the cafeteria and get her something to eat."

"No chocolate!" Nancy and Frank both said at the same time. They looked at each other before laughing out loud; soon the whole room was filled with laughter.

"Frank, why did you say no to pain medication?" Nancy asked as she saw Frank begin to wince as he moved.

"The doctor told me that it would make me all drowsy and incoherent. I wanted to be alert when you all came in, that's why."

"Well, you need to rest now Frank. We will be back later on." Joe said as he and Fenton made their way to the door. Laura kissed his forehead before also leaving the room.

"I'm not going anywhere." Nancy said.

"Good." Frank said before pulling Nancy in for a passionate kiss.

When Frank's lips met her own, Nancy wanted to melt. She forgot everything else and just wanted to stay in this moment forever.

But their moment was ruined rather quickly.

"YUCKY!" Chloe shouted as she opened the door to her parents kissing.

Nancy and Frank broke apart abruptly and stared at Chloe.

"What are you doing here princess?" Frank asked, somewhat breathlessly.

"I forgot Rainbow here. She needs to eat too." Chloe said, pointing to the unicorn lying on the floor next to the bed.

Chloe picked up the unicorn and skipped out of the room, but not before muttering something about yucky lip touching.

Frank and Nancy stared at the door as it closed.

"Why is it that she walks in whenever we kiss?" Nancy asked, a smile appearing on her face as she watched her daughter leave.

"Bad timing?" Frank suggested, shrugging his shoulders.

Nancy laughed, remembering a time when something similar to this happened.

 _Flashback to about 6 months ago…_

 _Chloe's birthday party had just ended. The last of her preschool friends had left and Nancy and Frank were cleaning up while Chloe was playing with her new toys._

 _Nancy was cleaning up the food in the kitchen and Frank was putting away the leftovers. Frank turned around and saw Nancy leaning over the sink, washing dishes._

 _Frank couldn't help but think about how beautiful she looked. Her strawberry blonde hair was flowing past her shoulders and the smell of her soft lavender shampoo was radiating off of her. He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her waist. Nancy stiffened in his arms for a second before relaxing into them. He buried his face into her hair and smiled._

" _You look gorgeous you know that?"_

 _Nancy smiled and nodded, turning around to face Frank._

" _You are pretty handsome yourself you know." Nancy said, laughing._

" _Why thank you my lady." Frank said, stupidly bowing._

 _Nancy laughed again and fingered his jaw._

" _You know, it's been a while since we had some fun Mrs. Hardy." Frank said, seductively._

" _Oh really? And what's your definition of fun Mr. Hardy." Nancy said just as seductively._

" _Hmmm… maybe I should just show you, rather than tell you."_

 _Frank began kissing Nancy's neck, jaw, nose, and finally landed on her lips._

 _Nancy wrapped her arms around Frank's neck and kissed him back with ferocity, while Frank tightened his grip on her waist. Just as things were getting to be intense, Nancy and Frank heard a loud squeal._

" _AAAHHHHH!" Chloe shrieked._

 _Nancy and Frank jumped apart, with Nancy pushing Frank away into the wall and knocking the wind out of him._

" _Mommy, what were you doing with daddy?"_

" _Um, nothing sweetie. We were just being happy." Nancy said, cursing herself mentally for such a lame excuse._

 _Frank almost laughed out loud, but immediately quieted down when Nancy shot him 'the glare'._

" _Why don't you go back and play with your new toys ok baby?" Nancy said._

 _Chloe eagerly nodded and ran back outside._

 _Frank got up and made his way back to Nancy._

" _Now where were we?" Frank asked._

" _We were cleaning up a three year olds birthday party." Nancy said, turning back to the sink. Frank stared at her in shock, his mouth wide open. Nancy smiled at his reaction and continued washing dishes._

 _End of Flashback_

Nancy smiled at the memory. Frank was hilariously shocked when Chloe caught them kissing. He was even more shocked when she had refused to kiss him after Chloe had left. She looked down at Frank, who was also smiling, no doubt remembering the same incident.

"I was so afraid. I thought that I was going to lose you." Nancy said, her voice choking up with tears.

"Hey, Nan, I'm ok. It will take a while but I will be fine." Frank said, grasping Nancy's hand tightly in his, softly kissing her palm.

"You don't get it Frank. You _died_. Your heart stopped after you were shot, on the operating table, and last night. You were dead." Nancy cried, all of the worry finally getting to her.

Nancy broke down sobbing and trembling in Frank's arms. Frank held her as tightly as he could without putting a strain on his injuries.

After Nancy had let all of the tears out, she sat up and saw that she had been crying on Frank's chest.

"Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry Frank. Are you alright?" Nancy said, frantic with worry.

"I'm fine Nan." Frank said, smiling exasperatedly, then yawning loudly.

"You should get some sleep. I'll go get the nurse to give you something for the pain."

Frank nodded his head, already nodding off to sleep. Nancy smiled at his sleeping form, happy that her family would be back to normal very soon.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Hi guys! Sorry for this late update, but here you go! Chapter 8 is up! Thank you so much for all of the positive comments you guys have given me. They are really inspiring me to write much more. Please let me know how you like this one! REVIEW, REVIEW, AND REVIEW!**

At the hospital…

It had been a week since Frank had woken up. Nancy spent every waking minute with him, not letting him out of her sight for even a minute. She decided that now was the time.

The doctor was with Frank checking up on him. The rest of the family was waiting right outside his room, waiting for the doctor to finish.

The door to Frank's room opened and the doctor came out. The Hardys held their breath as they waited for the doctor to speak.

The doctor took a deep breath before beginning.

"Frank is recovering very quickly and will be able to go home in a couple of days to finish recuperating comfortably at home." The doctor smiled at the Hardy family as they celebrated the life of their beloved family member.

"Thank you so much Doctor." Fenton said, relieved that Frank will be okay.

The rest of the family also thanked the doctor and made their way into Frank's room.

Frank was sitting up in bed looking much better than he had in days. The color had returned to his face, he was breathing much more easily, and the constant look of pain on his face had diminished.

"Hey guys." Frank said, smiling at his family.

"Guess what Frank? You get to go home in a few days." Laura said excitedly, overjoyed that her baby will finally be okay.

"Finally! I can get out of this prison now." Frank said, smiling.

The rest of the family laughed at his comment. They spent a little more time together before Fenton, Laura, Joe, and Vanessa got up to leave.

"Frank, we are going to head down to the police station and see what they have gotten on the shooting at the mall. Your mother and Vanessa are going to head home and make some good food for you guys. We will be back in an hour." Fenton said, while making his way to the door.

Frank nodded in agreement and said goodbye to the four departing Hardys. Nancy sat down on the side of his bed and made herself comfortable next to Frank while Chloe sat down in the chair next to the bed and played with her unicorn. Frank quietly wrapped his arm around Nancy and hugged her tightly to him.

"Frank, I need to tell you something." Nancy said, playing with his hair.

"What is it Nan?" Frank said, knowing that Nancy only played with his hair when she was nervous.

"When you were…unconscious, I was so worried that you wouldn't make it. Promise me that you will never leave me." Nancy pleaded, burying her face into Frank's chest.

Nancy's reaction was really starting worry Frank. She never acted like this. Something was not right.

"I promise Nan. I will always be with you and Chloe. Always." Frank murmured into Nancy's hair, smelling her lavender shampoo and smiling.

Nancy took a deep breath before speaking.

"Well, it won't just be me and Chloe you will be with anymore." Nancy said.

Frank had a thoroughly confused look on his face.

"Huh?"

Nancy rolled her eyes. Frank could be really dense sometimes.

"I'm pregnant Frank." Nancy said, a small smile on her face.

Frank stared at her for a long moment before smiling like a Cheshire cat. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and kissed her senseless.

"Are you serious?" Frank asked, staring down at Nancy's stomach, almost expecting it to magically expand in front of his eyes.

"Yup! I'm 12 weeks along. I checked with the doctor the day before we went to the mall." Nancy said.

"This is amazing." Frank said.

Chloe looked up from playing to see what her parents were talking about.

"Mommy, what does pregnat mean?" Chloe asked, her eyes wide with question.

Nancy and Frank laughed at the girls attempt to say the word pregnant.

"Baby, it's pronounced pre-g-nant." Nancy said, slowly drawing out each syllable for the girl to understand.

"Pregnat." Chloe said cutely.

Frank and Nancy just shook their heads in amusement, smiles on their faces.

"What does that mean?" Chloe asked.

Frank motioned for her to come onto the bed. Chloe scrambled up and snuggled into Frank's side.

"Well princess, it means that there is a baby inside of mommy's tummy. Then soon, you will be a big sister."

Chloe stared at Nancy's stomach, looking thoroughly intrigued. Then a huge smile came onto her face.

"I will be the best big sister ever!" Chloe yelled.

The three Hardys continued laughing and talking for some time.

Suddenly they heard a grumbling noise coming from Chloe. Frank and Nancy looked over and saw her smiling sheepishly.

"Mommy, I'm hungry." Chloe said innocently.

Nancy smiled and helped Chloe off of the bed.

"Let's go down to the cafeteria and get some food okay?"

Chloe nodded her head in agreement.

"Bye daddy! See you later!" Chloe said as she made her way to the door.

Nancy gave Frank a quick peck on the lips and promised to be back in half an hour.

Frank watched as the two made their way to the door before settling down into the bed and closing his eyes. Soon, he had nodded off and was softly snoring, dreaming of his happy family.

Unknown Warehouse, 2 hours previous…

It had been a week. A week since Andrew had given Frank Formula X. He is a week closer to getting his revenge.

Mike and Ben watched as Andrew paced back and forth, muttering and mumbling to himself.

"So what's our next move boss?" Mike asked Andrew.

Andrew looked at his two henchmen, a diabolical smile appearing on his face.

"Now, boys, we will get Frank Hardy." Andrew said, grinning maniacally.

The three men made their way out into a plain, black van and made their way to Bayport and to the hospital. The three discussed their strategy on the way there. It was decided that Mike and Andrew would go into the hospital to get Frank while Ben remained in the car as the getaway driver. After a while, Ben pulled into the hospital parking lot. Andrew and Mike got out of the car and went into the hospital.

Andrew led Mike to a closet that was filled with extra hospital scrubs. They each donned a pair and made their way to the ICU, where Frank was. Mike was to keep watch and make sure no one came that way, while Andrew snuck in and grabbed Frank.

Andrew quietly opened the door to Frank's room, a syringe filled with chloroform in his hand. He made is way to Frank's side and plunged the needle into Frank's arm. Immediately, Frank fell limp and his head lolled to the side. Andrew quickly grabbed a wheelchair from the closet and placed Frank in it.

He exited the room and he and Mike made their way out of the hospital. Mike went up ahead a bit and made sure the way was clear for Andrew to come out with an unconscious Frank. Quickly and quietly, they exited the hospital and made their way to the van, where Ben was waiting for them. Mike quickly opened the back door and they tossed Frank in after tying his hands and feet to ensure that he did not try and escape.

As they left the hospital parking lot, Andrew smiled.

"Now you are mine Frank Hardy. You will pay for what you have done." Andrew said, glancing back at the unconscious young man in the backseat.

 **AN: Also, I don't really know whether or not hospitals carry extra scrubs. I just added that in there because it fit in pretty well. Before, Andrew knocked out another male nurse, but here he is getting the scrubs from a closet. Sorry if that's not true, but once again, it just fits in with the storyline. Also, I know hospitals are pretty crowded but let's just pretend that this one is not that crowded :).**


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Hi guys! Thanks once again for such positive reviews. Here is Chapter 9. I hope you like it and please REVIEW, REVIEW, and REVIEW!**

Somewhere in a traveling van…

Frank's unconscious body was bouncing in the back of a dark black van. His three captors, Andrew, Ben, and Mike were silently in the front of the van, determined to extract their revenge out of their comatose victim.

After some time, the four pulled up in front of the warehouse and got out. Mike and Ben dragged the unconscious Frank out of the van and inside, with Andrew following them, holding a mysterious black suitcase.

"Where should we put him Boss?" Ben asked, gesturing to Frank.

"Put him in the 'special' room." Andrew said, smiling evilly.

Mike and Ben took Frank down a long corridor, turned a right corner, went down some stairs, and finally made it to a barred door with a fingerprint scanner that led to the basement.

Andrew walked up to the door, put his thumb on the scanner, and opened the door.

The evil trio walked through the door and Andrew flipped a switch, turning on the lights.

The sight in front of Mike and Ben nearly made them drop Frank in shock and surprise.

'So this is why Boss never let us down here.' Mike thought in his head.

In front of them was a completely stocked up military arsenal, loaded with an assortment of weapons. Right next to the arsenal was another room. Andrew opened that room and it made Mike and Ben's mouths drop open. It looked like it was a torture room. There was a table with straps, knives all around the room, spiked maces, and many other weapons that could be used for torture.

"See this boys. This is a special surprise for Mr. Hardy here." Andrew said, while simultaneously grinning maniacally at his two henchmen. Finally, Frank Hardy will pay for killing his family.

A sudden groaning came from Frank and the three men looked down at him.

"Strap him down to the table." Andrew ordered.

Mike and Ben dragged the groaning Frank towards the table and tightly strapped him down.

"Leave" Andrew commanded to Mike and Ben, slipping into the shadows of the room himself.

Frank groaned as he slowly came to. He could see bright lights in front of his closed eyes. Frank slowly opened his eyes and blinked a few times to clear his head. Everything around him seemed very muggy and foggy. He groaned again and turned his head. As his vision cleared, Frank saw a very scary sight. Knives, whips, and spiked maces lined his vision. Frank tried to move but couldn't. He looked down and he saw that he was strapped down to a table, completely immobilized. Frank began to panic and began thrashing around on the table.

"Now now, Mr. Hardy. There is no need to panic." Andrew said, emerging from the shadows and into the light.

"Who are you? Where am I? What do you want?" Frank asked rapidly.

"Mr. Hardy, My name is Andrew Chase, you are in an abandoned warehouse. As for what I want with you…", Andrew leaned down so that he was face to face with Frank, "…I want you to suffer, Mr. Hardy." Andrew said, his eyes gleaming with anger.

Frank saw the evil glint in Andrew's eyes and realized that he was in some serious trouble.

Back at the hospital…

Nancy and Chloe were in the cafeteria; Chloe was happily eating a slice chocolate cake and Nancy picked at some fruit, watching her baby girl eat, her face smothered in chocolate.

After about 20 minutes, both mother and daughter had finished and they made their way back to Frank's room.

On the way back, Chloe tugged on her mother's hand.

"Mommy, I gotta go potty." Chloe said, crossing her legs on each other, slightly bouncing up and down.

"Okay come on. Try to hold it in ok." Nancy rushed Chloe off to the ladies' room before she wet herself, which happened to occur very often.

After Chloe had used the restroom, the two made their way to Frank's room.

Just as they were about to turn the corner, they saw Fenton, Laura, Joe, and Vanessa come through the entrance.

"Grandma! Grandpa! Uncle Joe! Aunt Nessa!" Chloe said, running up to the other four adults and into Joe's arms, Joe lifting her off of her feet and spinning her in the air.

"Hey kiddo! Whatcha doing?" Joe asked the excited little girl.

"I said hi to daddy, then mommy and daddy started kissing, then mommy had a baby in her tummy, then I got chocolate cake, and then I went potty." Chloe shrieked out in delight.

Nancy froze right where she was, as did the rest of the Hardys.

Laura was the first to break the silence.

"Nancy, are you pregnant?" Laura asked calmly.

Nancy looked down at her feet and nodded.

Laura burst out laughing and tightly wrapped her arms around Nancy.

"Oh congratulations sweetie. Finally another grandbaby I can spoil." Laura said happily.

The rest of the family gave their congratulations to Nancy as well.

"Well, I think that we should also congratulate Frank too. Come on kiddo!" Joe said, picking Chloe up and sitting her on his shoulders as the family made their way down the hall towards Frank's room.

'So that's why Nancy was acting so strange when Frank was hurt.' Vanessa thought in her head.

Joe and Chloe reached the room first and opened the door. They stopped in their tracks there.

As the other four reached the door, they were completely flabbergasted.

Frank was missing.

"Where's Frank?" Nancy asked hysterically.

Joe put his arms around her in a brotherly manner and held her as tears fell from her eyes.

"We're gonna find him Nan." Joe said as Nancy sobbed into his shoulder.

The Hardys quickly divided up. Joe and Fenton went to go inform security and see if they have anything on the cameras. Vanessa took Chloe out of the room and away from all the chaos to make sure that the little toddler was not frightened. Laura and Nancy remained in the room and searched for clues that could help explain Frank's disappearance.

Nancy looked in the trashcan near the bed and noticed a syringe. She grabbed a tissue and pulled it out.

"Laura, look. I found this in the trash. Whoever took Frank probably injected him with this to knock him out." Nancy said, going into detective mode.

The door to the room opened and Joe and Fenton walked in with a couple of security guards behind them.

"We saw the camera footage." Fenton said.

"And? Was Frank taken?" Nancy asked hurriedly.

Fenton looked at Nancy and took a deep breath.

"Yes, someone snuck in, stole some scrubs, injected Frank with something and took him. We already called the police and they are investigating. The camera in the parking lot managed to pick up two guys putting Frank in a black van and then leaving the premises." Fenton said.

Nancy wrapped her arms tightly around her, desperately trying to hold back tears. Laura wrapped her arms around Nancy and held the girl as she sobbed her eyes out.

"I need him. I need him so much." Nancy wailed.

"I know sweetie. We all need him." Laura said, tears streaming down her face.

Fenton and Joe joined the hug as well as Vanessa and Chloe who had arrived shortly after Fenton and Joe.

Holding each other, the Hardy family prayed and hoped that Frank was all right.

AN: I am pretty sure hospitals have security guards, but I am may be wrong so just please go along with it! Thanks! :)


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Hi guys! Here is another chapter. Sorry for the late update but thank you so much for all of the positive reviews. Just a heads up, this chapter is a bit gruesome so prepare yourselves. Also, it may be a while before I update again because school is starting up again so I will be pretty busy. But I promise that I will try to update as much and as soon as possible. Once again, thank you so much for all of these positive reviews. Please REVIEW! :)**

At the warehouse…

Frank had been strapped down onto the table for quite a while now. Ever since his captor, Andrew he remembered had told him that he wanted Frank to suffer; he has had a cold feeling running throughout him. He wounds were really starting to throb as the cold metal seeped into his skin, making goose bumps appear on his bare arms and the back of his neck.

The door to the room opened and Andrew walked in along with two big, buff men.

"Hello, Mr. Hardy. I hope you are comfortable here." Andrew said, with false politeness.

"Yeah, it's a walk through a fresh meadow." Frank said, sarcasm dripping from every word.

"Wonderful! Now I would like to introduce you to my colleagues, Mike and Ben." Andrew said, gesturing to the two thugs behind him.

Mike and Ben smiled evilly and cracked their knuckles as they slowly made their way forward.

"Why are you doing this?" Frank asked fearfully.

Andrew's eyes hardened as he leaned down to look Frank in the eye.

"You killed my family Frank Hardy. My wife, my son, and my daughter were killed because of you."

"What are you talking about? I don't understand." Frank said, panic lacing his voice.

Think back to about a year ago. You were trying to solve the kidnapping of daughter of a wealthy philanthropist. Think hard. Does it ring a bell?" Andrew said, glaring daggers as Frank.

Frank's eyes widened in realization.

 _Flashback…_

 _It was a normal day for the Hardys. Fenton and Joe were already in the office. Frank had had a long night the night before. Chloe had been sick with a fever all day. Nancy and Frank had taken yesterday off and were both at home with Chloe._

 _The rest of the Hardys had visited and tried to cheer the little two-year-old up. Laura had made Chloe's favorite tomato and basil soup; Joe gave her a stuffed snowman that sang an adorable song; Vanessa had brought over all of Chloe's favorite Disney Princess movies, and Fenton had brought Chloe's absolute favorite thing; Snickers! The family had a fun night last night and Chloe had looked much better as the Hardys began leaving._

 _Both father and son looked up as Frank walked in through the door, looking a bit weary and rugged with dark circles under his eyes, but still better than he had looked yesterday._

" _What are you doing here Frank? Is Chloe okay?" Fenton asked, worry for his little grandbaby instantly filling his voice._

" _Chloe's fine dad. Her fever broke late last night and she has been running around all morning. Nan's staying home today just to make sure that Chloe is completely fine. Thought I could come in and catch up on all the stuff I missed yesterday." Frank said._

" _You didn't really miss much bro. We are still working on that kidnapping. You know, Jake Dalton's daughter, Sophia. That rich dude who donated like… a million dollars to some charity that helps orphaned children. Someone took her three days ago and they haven't heard anything since." Joe said._

" _Yeah. They still haven't made any ransom demands?" Frank asked questioningly._

" _Nope."_

 _The shrill ringing of the telephone interrupted their conversation. Frank walked over and answered._

" _Hello, Hardy Detective Agency… Mr. Dalton… yes… they called?... What did they say?" Frank spoke into the phone._

 _Fenton and Joe watched anxiously as Frank talked to Mr. Dalton over the phone. Frank hung up and looked at the two._

" _It was Jake Dalton. The kidnappers called and demanded a ransom. They want 10 million dollars and they gave him a location to bring it to tonight."_

 _Frank handed the address he wrote down to Fenton, who booted up the computer and looked it up._

" _Got it. It's about 6 miles out of Bayport. I'll sync the directions to your phone." Fenton said to Frank._

 _Frank and Joe made their way out to Frank's car and followed the directions, leading them to an abandoned cabin in the middle of some woods outside of Bayport._

 _Both brothers pulled out their guns and made their way towards the cabin._

" _Joe, I'll go in the front, you go around back. We are switching to radio mode. DO NOT ATTACK. We just need to make sure Sophia is here and then we'll come back tonight when the exchange happens with come cops for backup." Frank said._

 _Joe nodded in agreement and made his way towards the back._

 _Frank circled around in the front and walked up to a window. He peered in carefully but saw no one. Just as he was about to open the window and go in, the door to the room opened. He quickly ducked out of sight and cautiously got up. He saw two men bringing in a girl with a black bag over her head. They sat her down in a chair and removed the bag before leaving the room. In front of him sat Sophia Dalton, alive and well._

" _Joe, I see Sophia. Head back do you copy?" Frank spoke into the radio._

" _Copy that. Heading back." Joe said over the radio._

 _Frank made his way back to the car and met up with Joe._

 _Later that night, Frank and Joe went back to the cabin with some Bayport police officers following them for backup._

 _Frank once again went through the front with about 6 police officers while Joe took the others through the back entrance. He kicked in the door and immediately saw Sophia Dalton bound to the chair. The policemen held the kidnappers at gunpoint and Frank quickly freed Sophia and led her out. But before he left, one of the kidnappers yelled at him to not take Sophia. If he took Sophia, they would kill his family. Frank turned around and saw the young man who called out to him, on his knees, begging for Frank to leave Sophia._

" _I'm sorry, but she is innocent. She will not be the victim of your psychotic ways." Frank said glaring at the man, before taking Sophia out of the cabin._

 _End of Flashback…_

"You-you were the one who kidnapped Sophia Dalton." Frank said, trembling in fear.

Andrew laughed manically.

"Yes I did kidnap her. But do you know why? An underground gang kidnapped my family and threatened to kill them if I did not kidnap that girl. Believe me, I did not want to kidnap that innocent little girl but I had no choice!" Andrew screamed in Frank's face as Frank flinched away.

"I begged you to leave the girl. But you took her anyways and what do you know? The next things that I got sent in jail were pictures of my dead family. Do you know how they were killed?" Andrew asked diabolically.

Andrew walked over to a drawer and pulled out an envelope. He walked back over to Frank and pulled out some developed prints. He thrust a picture in front of Frank's face and all the color drained out of Frank's face.

There were three dead bodies in the picture. A young woman, eyes wide open on the ground, covered in bullet wounds from head to toe was surrounded by a little boy and a little girl, whose age was probably the same as Chloe's. The boy, Andrew's son, Frank assumed, had been stabbed multiple times in the chest, arms, and legs. The little girl was probably killed in the worst way possible. Whip marks covered her torso, arms and legs, she was cut in multiple places, blood oozing out of the wounds, and she was pinned to the floor with nails.

Just looking at her made Frank want to vomit.

"Do you see this Mr. Hardy? This is what they did to my family, all be cause of you." Andrew accused furiously.

"Listen to me Andrew. I was hired by Jake Dalton to find his daughter and bring her back safely. I'm truly very sorry for what you and your family suffered through but please; I never wanted this to happen. Those people who killed your family should suffer the consequences. I'm a detective; I can help you find their killers. Please." Frank pleaded.

"It's too late for that now Frank. I ended their lives myself. But you are still left. And believe me, when I am through with you, you will beg for death." Andrew said, a maniacal glint in his eyes.

Andrew walked towards the door and turned around to face Mike, Ben, and Frank, who was still strapped to the table.

"Boys, Mr. Hardy doesn't look to well. He seems really pale. Give him some color." Andrew said, eyeing all of the torture weapons in the room, before turning around and leaving the room.

Mike and Ben turned to face Frank and they slowly made their way towards the table.

" _I love you Nan. I love you Chloe."_ This was Frank's last thought before his world erupted in pain and he blacked out.


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: Hi guys! So I'm finally back. I'm really sorry for such a late update but as I mentioned before, school for me has restarted and I have been really busy. But I promise that I will try to update as much as I can. Once again, thank you so much for all of these positive reviews. They truly encourage me to continue writing.**

The Hardy house…

It had been three days since Frank had been kidnapped. Fenton, Joe, and the police have tried following various leads, from checking the security footage at the hospital to even interrogating the hospital staff to see if they saw anything suspicious. Yet, there was still no clue on who took Frank or where Frank was.

The Hardys finished a despondent and solemn dinner together, trying to force the food down their throats.

Nancy was absent-mindedly moving her food around on her plate, only taking small bits and pieces of food here and there, her mind frantic with worry about Frank.

The rest of the Hardys weren't doing much better either.

Laura kept fighting back tears as she ate her dinner. Every time she took a bite of food, she thought to herself _"What kind of mother am I? My child is missing out there with three gunshot wounds that haven't even healed properly and I'm here eating dinner when he could be starving somewhere?"_ This made her stop eating completely and she excused herself, going into the kitchen to try and distract herself from her thoughts.

Fenton and Joe were both angry and depressed. They were angry at the fact that someone had taken Frank and they couldn't find any leads on him and depressed because they just wanted their family together, safe and happy.

Fenton glanced over at Chloe who was hugging her unicorn to her chest and slowly eating her cut up broccoli pieces on her plate. Most children hated eating her vegetables but Chloe was a special exception. She absolutely LOVED vegetables. Broccoli was her favorite. On her dinner plate, it was an absolute must to have broccoli. Normally, Chloe eats the broccoli so quickly that it made his head spin, even he didn't eat his vegetables that fast (yes, Laura still made Fenton eat his vegetables, claiming that they keep him healthy in his old age. Pffft, he's not old). Today, and for the past three days, Chloe has barely touched her vegetables. It broke Fenton's heart to see his precious grandbaby upset.

Slowly, everyone finished eating their dinner, minus Laura who was already in the kitchen. Laura came back outside just as Nancy took the last bite of her dinner. She abruptly stopped chewing and made a strange moaning noise. Everyone looked up at her right before she bolted out of the dining room and into the bathroom. Laura and Vanessa quickly followed, Vanessa telling Joe to keep Chloe with him.

Laura and Vanessa approached the bathroom door and heard Nancy retching into the toilet. They waited a few moments and then heard a flush. Laura tentatively opened the door and saw Nancy sitting on the floor next to the door, her knees pulled up to her chest.

Laura crouched down to the ground.

"Nan? Are you alright?" Laura asked, her motherly instinct automatically kicking in.

"Yeah, I guess the little one didn't really like dinner that much." Nancy said, trying to make a joke but failing miserable.

Nancy tried to hold her composure but finally, her walls broke.

Nancy collapsed into Laura's arms, sobbing and wailing. Laura wrapped her arms tightly around the distraught young woman and held her tight, gently stroking her hair and whispering comforting words in her ear.

After Nancy had let all of the tears flow out, she sat back up.

"Laura, remember how sick I was when I was pregnant with Chloe? I used to get sick so many times during the day that I would sometimes just spend half of the day on the bathroom floor. Frank was so overprotective of me then. He wouldn't let me move, work, or do anything strenuous."

 _Flashback…_

 _Nancy and Frank Hardy were on their way home from the doctor's. Nancy was 6 months along and both she and Frank were extremely excited. In the beginning of Nancy's pregnancy, she was violently sick. Every time Frank saw her running off to the bathroom, his heart would throb. He hated seeing the woman he loved so much in any pain. But as the weeks went by, Nancy stopped getting sick and was glowing with joy._

 _Frank on the other hand was absolutely elated. He had been ever since they found out they were having a girl._

 _The couple made their way into the house and Nancy headed over to the kitchen to get herself some mint chocolate chip ice cream. This was the one thing that she craved for constantly. Frank knew that he should try and stop her but every time he said something, she gave him "the look". Frank was smart enough not to get in between a pregnant woman, especially a well-trained detective, and food._

 _Nancy grabbed her ice cream and made her way over to the couch. Frank helped her sit down and then plopped down next to her._

" _Nancy, you know that the doctor told you to take it easy. So no more work, no more doing anything hard, and no more mysteries." Frank said, emphasizing the work mysteries._

 _Nancy rolled her eyes. Truly, she loved Frank with her entire being, but right now, he was just being extremely over protective._

 _But just to make him happy, she nodded and then placed a kiss on his lips, preventing him from saying anything else._

" _Ok Frank. I will be careful and I will take it easy. You worry too much." Nancy said, playfully hitting him on the chest._

" _I don't worry too much." Frank pouted, his face in a frown, similar to that of a child who dropped his candy bar on the sidewalk._

" _Whatever you say." Nancy laughed._

 _During the next three months, Nancy was sure that she was going to kill Frank._

 _He constantly fussed over her, didn't let her get out of bed, and was always following her around._

 _Finally, Nancy had had enough._

" _Frank, I love you but seriously, you need to calm down. You are fretting for no reason, I am perfectly fine. But you really need to chill out." Nancy said exasperatedly._

" _Nan, you are 8 and a half months pregnant. You could go into labor any time now. You need to be careful and you need to be well rested. I don't want anything happening to my girls now do I?" Frank asked before kissing Nancy and then crouching down to give her stomach a kiss._

" _I can't wait to see you baby girl. I promise that I will love you and protect you forever." Frank whispered lovingly while softly caressing Nancy's stomach. He smiled when he felt the baby kick._

 _The next day, all of Nancy's patience with Frank went down the drain._

 _Nancy was craving some Mexican food so Frank ordered some takeout for lunch since he refused to leave Nancy's side at all. They were about halfway through their meal, with Frank constantly looking Nancy over for any signs of pain and Nancy gritting her teeth in frustration at Frank's overprotective gaze, when Nancy gasped out in pain._

" _Frank, my water broke." Nancy said quietly, waiting for Frank to go off._

" _WHAT? Right now? What do I do? What do I do?" Frank shrieked, running around in all directions trying to figure out what he was supposed to do._

 _At this point, Nancy was fuming. As Frank came near her, she grabbed his arm and pulled him down as hard as she could to meet his gaze._

" _Franklin Matthew Hardy, you listen to me right now. First, be absolutely quiet. Second, go upstairs and get the bag that is ready by the door. Third, grab your cell phone, wallet, and keys. GO!" Nancy all but screamed at him._

 _Frank quickly scampered up the stairs, grabbed the bag, his phone, keys, and wallet, and made his way back downstairs._

" _Now, go put those things in the car and come back and help me up." Nancy said, breathing deeply through the pain of the contractions._

 _Frank did as he was told and soon the two were on their way to the hospital. Frank had finally calmed down to the point where he could hold his phone without his hand shaking and he dialed the first person he could think of in a situation like this, his mom._

" _Hello?" Laura answered._

" _Mom, it's Frank. Listen, Nancy's water broke and we are on our way to the hospital. Can you all meet us there?" Frank asked in a rush._

" _Oh dear of course son. We will be there soon. Try to stay calm ok?" Laura said before hanging up._

 _Frank hung up the phone and grabbed Nancy's hand, who was panting hard, trying not to scream out in pain._

" _It's ok Nan. Just try to stay calm and breathe." Frank said soothingly._

" _Don't tell me what to do!" Nancy snapped. It looks like the hormones finally began working._

 _Frank remained silent the rest of the way there, knowing that the smartest thing he could do was to let Nancy squeeze the life out of his hand and keep his mouth shut._

 _Several hours later, Chloe Michelle Hardy was born._

 _End of Flashback…_

By now, Nancy was full on sobbing in Laura's arms.

"I just want him back. I need him so much." Nancy wailed.

This broke both Laura and Vanessa, who looked at Frank as her older brother.

The Hardy family needed Frank to return home.

At the warehouse…

Frank's body throbbed all over. Black and blue bruises covered his entire body. Not only that but his stiches from his gunshot wounds had reopened and blood was slowly starting to seep through his bandages. His torso was littered up with cuts and he could barely move without crying out in pain. He could tell that at least some ribs were broken, his jaw was broken, and he could even see the bone sticking out of his leg.

He groaned as the door slowly opened and Andrew, Mike, and Ben strolled in.

"Why hello there Frank. Oh don't you look splendid today? I see the boys brightened you up quite a bit." Andrew said, smiling evilly.

"Yeah no kidding." Frank grumbled, wincing as his jaw throbbed in pain.

"Well, since you agree, I think we can agree on another thing as well." Andrew said as he sat in a chair and looked down at Frank.

"I think it's time that your beloved family knows where you are. This way, I can slowly kill you and have your family watch; the same way that my family was killed and I had to see their bodies." Andrew said, his voice hard and cold.

Frank's eyes widened in horror.

"Please Andrew. Please don't do this. Look you have me. Do whatever you want with me. Please just leave my family alone." Frank begged.

Andrew just laughed evilly.

"Now why would I do that? You deserve to suffer for what you have put me through." Andrew hissed in Frank's face.

The next thing Frank knew, a hard uppercut to the jaw knocked him unconscious.

Andrew looked at Frank's limp body before turning to Mike and Ben.

"Take some snaps of him and send them to the Hardys." Andrew said, glaring at Frank's prone body.

Andrew left the room and Mike brought in a camera. Ben positioned Frank and Mike took several pictures that were developed right on the spot (this camera is like those older cameras that print out pictures right when you take them…I didn't know what they were called…sorry :)).

"Looks like the Hardys are in for a rude awakening." Mike laughed heartily.

Ben simply smiled in delight, although he had a face of slight discomfort.

 **AN: So there you go…chapter 11! I still can't believe that I have written eleven chapters. But once again, please review and let me know how you like it.**


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: Hi guys! Well, here is Chapter 12. Can you believe it, two chapters in such a short amount of time? Thank you all for such awesome reviews. Please, please, please review some more. Your reviews are constantly encouraging me to keep writing. Please continue reviewing and tell me how you like it.**

Mike and Ben made their way to the Hardy house to deliver the 'package', as Andrew had put it.

The plan was simple. Drop the envelope off at the front door, leave, and then call them from a pay phone to tell them about the envelope. Simple.

Mike pulled up a block away from the house and Ben grabbed the envelope and made his way out.

Ben quickly made his way to the Hardys' front door and dropped the envelope off. He quickly ran back to the van and got in. Mike pulled out and drove about 5 minutes away to a pay phone. Ben once again, hopped out at dialed the Hardy's landline.

 _Ring….Ring….Ring…_

" _Hello?" Fenton's voice came through to Ben._

" _There's an envelope outside your front door. You'll find out something about your son." Ben said._

" _Who are you? What do you want? Let Frank go please." Fenton's voice cracked a bit at the end. Ben could've sworn that Fenton was holding back tears._

 _Ben hung up._

As Ben hung up, he couldn't help but feel a large lump rise in his throat. He looked back at Mike and noticed that he was paying no attention to Ben.

" _Idiot." Ben thought._

Ben quickly shoved another quarter in the slot and dialed the Hardys back.

This time, it was a young lady's voice on the phone.

" _You can find Frank at 742 Bloomfield Dr. Warehouse 13." Ben spoke quickly into the phone before hanging up._

Ben made his way out and joined Mike back in the van and the two goons left the friendly neighborhood.

At the Hardy house…

After Fenton got the phone call, he made his way to the front door and opened it. There was a plain white envelope sitting on the welcome mat in front of him. He opened the envelope and his heart nearly stopped.

There were over half a dozen pictures, all showing a beat up, bruised, and unconscious Frank.

Fenton heard some commotion behind him in the house and he hid the pictures behind his back.

Nancy came running up to Fenton, Joe fast on her heels.

"We know where Frank is." Nancy yelled excitedly. Joe nodded his head in agreement.

"What? How?" Fenton said in shock.

"I just got a phone call, it was a private number, pay phone I think, and he told me an address. 742 Bloomfield Dr. Warehouse 13. We need to go and find him."

"Ok. Joe, you and I will go to the Warehouse and I'll call Con Riley and Chief Collig on the way for backup. Let's go." Fenton said firmly.

"I'm coming too." Nancy said, heading for the door.

Joe and Fenton both pulled her back by her arms.

"No way."

"Not happening." They both said at the same time.

"Nancy, you are pregnant. You can't go out like this." Joe said.

"But Frank…" Nancy started.

"Frank will be fine. I promise you. But you need to take care of Chloe and the little one in there right now ok?" Fenton said, placing both hands on her shoulders and giving them a gentle squeeze.

Nancy looked like she was about to protest, but then reluctantly nodded her head.

Fenton gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and Joe gave her a hug before they headed out the front door. Fenton managed to discreetly hide the envelope in his pocket before making his way out the door.

The last thing he wanted was for anyone else to see Frank in such a heart-wrenching condition.

Joe started the car and they pulled out of the driveway.

"Hold on Frank. We're coming for you son." Fenton said to himself.

At the Warehouse…

Frank was seriously getting tired of these constant beatings. Not only that, but Andrew injected him with something that is preventing him from falling asleep. So not only was he getting tortured, but he constantly had to feel the pain of it.

Frank raised his head as he heard the door open. Andrew walked in with a confident stride and stopped right in front of Frank.

"Well Frankie, I see that are faring pretty well if I do say so myself." Andrew said, mock happiness in his voice.

"Look Andrew, I am truly sorry for what happened to you and your family. Believe me, if I could change it, I would without hesitation. But torturing me won't bring them back." Frank said, desperately trying to think of a way to escape this madman's clutches.

"I KNOW IT WON'T BRING THEM BACK! BUT I WILL AVENGE THEIR DEATHS! YOU KILLED MY FAMILY AND YOU WILL PAY FRANK HARDY!" Andrew exploded before exiting the room.

He re-entered the room moments later with a black rod and two men that were dressed in lab coats. The two white coats roughly grabbed Frank by the arms and strapped him down to the metal table that was in the middle of the room.

Frank tried to fight them but their grip on him was too strong and he was extremely weak. They strapped him down to the table and Andrew slowly approached Frank.

He was holding the black rod in a very intimidating manner.

"What is that?" Frank rasped out in pain. His gunshot wounds were truly starting cause him some serious pain.

Andrew slowly made his way forward and pressed a button on the black rod, electricity lighting up on the entire rod.

"My favorite toy." Andrew said, a maniacal look on his face.

Frank had a look of terror on his face as Andrew got closer and closer to him.

Andrew gave a loud and malicious laugh before pressing to rod roughly to Frank's chest.

Frank let out an agonized scream as electricity coursed through his body. His back arched up and he began convulsing on the table as electricity continued to race through his body.

After a while the electricity finally died down and Frank collapsed on the table, gasping for air.

"Did you have fun Frankie?" Andrew sneered in Frank's face.

Frank was too exhausted to say anything.

Andrew waited a moment before smiling evilly in Frank's face again.

"Well, time for Round 2!" Andrew said happily as he flipped the switch on the rod again and brought it down to Frank's chest again.

Frank's screams echoed throughout the warehouse again, this time, much more pained.

 **AN: So…you like it? What's going to happen to Frank? Will Joe and Fenton make it to Frank on time? Review and let me know how you like it. :)**


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: Hi guys! I am finally back! I am so sorry for such a late update. School has been killing me and I have not had any time to update but thank you all so much for such encouraging reviews. Here is Chapter 13! Please REVIEW, REVIEW and REVIEW!**

Fenton and Joe pulled up to the warehouse where Frank was being held a while later and parked a short distance away. They quietly exited the car, weapons drawn, and made their way towards the warehouse. Fenton had informed Con Riley and Chief Collig and they were on their way there with backup.

Fenton felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and he pulled it out, the caller ID showing Con Riley.

"Fenton, we will be there in a minute. I know you and Joe want to rush in and find Frank but you don't know what these men are capable of. Wait for us and we will find Frank." Con Riley said over the phone, knowing the Hardys well enough to know that both father and son will rush into that warehouse to find Frank.

"Okay. We'll wait but hurry up. Who knows what those guys could be doing to Frank in there." Fenton said quickly before hanging up.

Several moments later, Con Riley, Chief Collig, and several other police cruisers stood in front of the two Hardys.

Chief Collig got right down to business and began making a game plan.

"Alright, listen up men. This warehouse has three entrances. Fenton, Joe, Con, and I will be going in through the front entrance. I want you four on my left going through the back entrance and the four of you on my right going in the east entrance. I also want a team in the parking lot here in case they try to make a run for it. Shoot only if necessary. I don't want to risk harming Frank Hardy in there who probably has God knows how many injuries. Understood?" Collig barked out.

"Yes sir." Was the unanimous answer of the police officers.

Collig quickly pulled Fenton aside before they broke into teams and told him that there was a medic chopper waiting a mile out, ready to move at a moment's notice. Fenton nodded gratefully, knowing that his son was in a pretty bad shape judging from the pictures that he had seen. Thankfully, no one else had to see them.

Everyone quickly got into position and on Chief Collig's mark, the teams jumped into action. The three entrances were simultaneously broken down and they went in hard.

Joe, Fenton, Con, and Collig burst through the front entrance and were met with emptiness. They quickly made their way into the massive warehouse and began searching for Frank. They could hear the other two teams making their way in as well. After a few silent minutes of searching, they four men heard on of the other officers through the radio.

"Chief, we've got him and the kidnappers." An officer said through the microphone that was in their ear.

He quickly gave them their location and the four made their way down there as fast as they could.

Fenton and Joe burst through the doors first and what they saw in front of them nearly made them want to vomit.

Frank, beaten, bloody, and bruised was strapped to a metal table with one of the kidnappers holding an electric rod right above him. Frank looked as if he was slipping in and out of consciousness.

All of the police officers had their guns trained on the kidnapper and were ready to shoot him as soon as they had the go-ahead.

"Don't even think about taking another step forward. There is so much electricity in Frank's body right now that if I were to flip this switch, he will go into cardiac arrest." The man threatened maniacally.

Fenton and Joe's throats closed up and the thought of Frank being put through more torture.

"Okay, listen to me. You don't want to do this. Just let Frank go and we can sit down and talk calmly about this." Fenton tried to reason.

This seemed to provoke the madman even more.

"NO! Stay back! I swear if you move a single muscle, I will end Frank Hardy's pitiful existence." He threatened, bringing the rod closer to Frank's exposed chest.

Everyone took a step back at the man's outburst.

Joe looked around, trying to find a way to distract the madman, when he noticed one of his henchmen inching closer to him. It seemed as if he didn't want the crazed psychopath to know that he was there. He slowly inched forward towards his boss, but before he could make a move, the lunatic brought the rod down to Frank's chest and pressed hard into it, laughing as Frank convulsed violently on the table before collapsing heavily on the table.

Everyone noticed one thing.

Frank's chest wasn't rising. His heart had stopped.

"NOOOOOOOO!" Fenton and Joe screamed, worry clawing at their throats.

Chief Collig and the rest of the officers quickly jumped into action. Collig fired a shot and shot the lunatic in the arm, effectively stopping him from doing any further damage. Con Riley and two other officers tackled the two henchmen down and began cuffing them. Collig quickly radioed in for the chopper while Fenton and Joe rushed to Frank.

"Frank, Frank come on. Oh God. Frank, wake up. WAKE UP!" Joe screamed in Frank's face, tears streaming down his face.

Fenton felt Frank's neck for a pulse and found none. He quickly wiped his tears and began doing chest compressions, determined to bring his son back. Joe saw his father doing them and cleared out Frank's airway, giving him two breaths every time Fenton did thirty chest compressions. This went on until the paramedics came and took over.

"No pulse! We've gotta shock him!" a paramedic yelled as another began setting up the defibrillator.

Fenton and Joe watched fearfully as the paramedics worked to revive Frank. They tried for several minutes but were still unsuccessful.

"Come on Frank! Don't leave us like this!" Joe said quietly to himself, praying that his brother will be okay.

Another anxious minute passed before the two apprehensive Hardys heard a loud beeping noise.

"We've got a pulse!" they heard a paramedic yell.

Joe closed his eyes in relief while Fenton collapsed to his knees, praying thanks to all of the gods out there that his son was alive.

The paramedics quickly began stabilizing Frank and several moments later, strapped him onto a gurney and rushed him over to the chopper that was waiting outside. Fenton and Joe tried to follow but there was not enough room in the helicopter for them. Chief Collig pulled the two of them back before they could protest any further.

"Fenton, Joe you two will only get in the way. Frank is not in the best condition and they are going to need all the space they can get to help him until he can get to the hospital. Con will take you both to the hospital. Don't worry about your car, I will have one of the boys drive it back later. Now go!" Collig said, pushing the two towards the police cruiser where Con Riley was already waiting for them.

Without wasting anymore time, Fenton and Joe made their way to the car and Con was pulling out before the doors were even shut all the way. On the way there, Joe called the house to let everyone else know what was going on.

" _Joe, what happened? Did you find Frank? Is he okay?"_ Nancy asked in a rush.

Joe took a deep breath before answering.

"Yeah Nan. We found him. We're on our way to the hospital. Meet us there and I'll explain everything." Joe said, not wanting to upset his distraught sister-in-law any further.

" _We'll be there in 10 minutes."_ Nancy said quickly before hanging up.

Joe hung up and stared out the window for the rest of the ride to the hospital.

Approximately five minutes later, Con pulled up the emergency room entrance and Fenton and Joe rushed out.

They made their way to the reception desk and asked about Frank.

"My brother, Frank Hardy, was just brought in by helicopter. How is he?" Joe asked frantically.

"They rushed him into surgery immediately after landing. I'm sorry that's all I have at the moment." The receptionist said apologetically.

Joe sighed heavily and nodded his thanks. Both father and son made their way to the waiting room and sat down. Minutes later, Nancy, Laura, Vanessa, and Chloe rushed into the waiting room. Nancy made a beeline for Joe who quickly stood up and held her as she practically collapsed into his arms.

"How is he? What happened? Joe say something!" Nancy cried.

Joe gently sat Nancy down and began telling her what happened. He watched anxiously as her facial expressions changed from angry, worried, to downright horrified. Nancy covered her mouth with her hands; tears streaming down her face as she thought about the torture her beloved husband was put through. Her body shook with silent sobs and Joe pulled her into a brotherly embrace, holding her tightly as she wept.

The Hardy family waited in tense silence, praying that Frank would be alright. Fenton and Laura sat quietly comforting each other, tears constantly streaming down Laura's face as she thought about her son, currently fighting for his life. Vanessa and Nancy sat together, Vanessa consoling a very distressed Nancy while Joe picked up little Chloe and took her outside for some fresh air, more for him than for her.

After about four hours, a doctor in dark blue scrubs approached the Hardys.

"Who is here for Frank Hardy?"

Everyone stood up while Joe and Chloe had just entered the waiting room.

"I'm his wife. How is he? Will he be alright?" Nancy asked fearfully.

The Doctor looked around at the rest of Frank Hardy's family. He saw an elder couple which he presumed were Frank's parents, his wife, a young man and woman who seemed like his brother and sister-in-law, and a little girl that was clutching Frank's wife's hand, his daughter, the doctor guessed.

He took a deep breath before speaking.

"As you already know, he had received three gunshot wounds not too long ago. Well those wounds had been reopened and were steadily bleeding. Not only that but his captors put Frank through a lot of torture. He has several broken ribs, a shattered humerus, a level 4 concussion, several lacerations all over his body, and severe internal bleeding. While operating, one of the broken ribs punctured his right lung and it collapsed. We have him on a ventilator until he can breathe on his own again. Also, while being held captive, Frank was electrocuted multiple times. This caused his heart to give out after being given too much electricity. Luckily, the paramedics got his heart started again. We nearly lost him on the operating table twice. He is a very lucky man. However, he is still in very critical condition and the next 72 hours are crucial. If shows signs of waking up, then we can hope for a full recovery. If not, then he may slip into a coma; one which we cannot tell if he will ever wake up from. He is currently being monitored in the ICU if you would like to visit him." The doctor finished, looking at the family's reaction to the news he had delivered. This really was the most hated part of his job. He hated putting people through the pain of not knowing whether or not their loved one will survive. The doctor quietly excused himself and left the family to their thoughts.

After learning about Frank's condition, Nancy's legs turned to jelly. She would have collapsed to the floor had Laura and Vanessa not caught her. She sobbed her heart out into Laura's arms. She cried for Frank, for Chloe who was too young to comprehend what was going on, for the rest of her family who were also shocked at the extent of Frank's injuries, and for her unborn child, who may never get to meet his or her father. Nancy finally let her walls down.

After a few minutes, Nancy had regained her composure and stood up.

"I need to see Frank." She said. The others just nodded and smiled sadly, knowing that she needed to see him with her own two eyes to make sure that he was indeed alive.

She made her way down the hallway towards the ICU and stopped in front of the door. She quickly wiped the tears away and took a deep breath before opening the door. As she entered the room, the tears that she had wiped away were immediately replaced by fresh ones that welled up in her eyes.

Frank was lying on the bed, so pale that he blended into the sterile white sheets. The ventilator in his mouth made a scary rasping every time Frank took a breath, there were several IVs in his arms, bandages were covering almost every part of his torso, a white cast was covering his arm, all of these making Frank look so vulnerable.

Nancy slowly made her way over to Frank's bedside. She sat down and tightly grasped his hand, slowly bringing it to her cheek.

"Frank, can you hear me? I am so happy you're okay. Now all you have to do is wake up and show me those gorgeous brown eyes that I love. We all miss you. Chloe misses the stories you read to her at night. Don't you want to read to her? Please wake up. I need you baby. I love you so much." Nancy said quietly before planting a soft kiss on Frank's forehead.

But Frank continued sleeping.

Nancy sat with Frank for a while longer before getting up to leave so the rest of the family could come visit.

As she was leaving, she gave her thanks to all the gods that Frank was alive and prayed that he would wake up. She needed Frank back.

 **AN: Well I hope you guys like that! Like I said before, Frank is my favorite character so he will be the one that his hurt the most. I really hope you guys liked it. I do apologize for any medical discrepancies but it made my story seem much more suspenseful! Once again, please REVIEW! :)**


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: Hi guys! I am so sorry about updating this late. School has had me really stressed out and being a senior, most of my time was spent filling out college applications. Once again, I am really sorry and here is chapter 14! This is sort of a filler chapter and it will probably be somewhat on the emotional side. Just so you know, I may or may not be wrapping this story up soon. If you guys have any ideas that you want me to include in this story, then please let me know. REVIEW, REVIEW, and REVIEW!**

It had been 24 hours. 24 hours since Frank had come out of surgery. Yet, there was still no sign of him waking up.

All members of the Hardy family had come in and visited Frank, minus Chloe, who didn't really know what was going on.

After Nancy had returned from seeing Frank, Fenton and Laura went in next to see him. They slowly walked down the corridor towards Frank's room; mentally bracing themselves for what condition they might see Frank in.

Laura took a shaky breath before stepping up and opening the door. As soon as she saw her son on the bed, her heart nearly stopped.

She saw her baby boy fighting for his life. She remembered when Frank was young; he would come in crying because he scraped his knee. She would put a Band-Aid on it; give him a kiss, and a cookie. Five minutes later, he would be back outside playing around as if nothing had never happened. Oh how she wished that were the case here. In front of her, her son lay surrounded by lifeless machines keeping him alive. She tentatively made her way towards him and slowly sat down in the chair next to the bed. She was distantly aware of her husband staring at Frank in shock and grief, probably angry with himself for not finding Frank sooner. Laura turned back to her son and gently grasped his hand in her own.

"Frank, sweetie you in there? It's mom." Laura said, her voice trembling with unshed tears. Fenton gently squeezed her shoulder, offering her silent comfort.

"Sweetie you need to wake up now ok? Everyone misses you and wants you to wake up. Tell you what? If you wake up, I promise to make you your favorite apple pie anytime you want. You can have it everyday if you want. All you need to do is open your eyes. Please baby? Please wake up." Laura said, her voice cracking at the end, silent tears streaming down her face.

Fenton silently came up and wrapped his arms around her. Laura buried her face in his chest and cried her heart out, fearing that their son may not make it. Fenton held his wife as she sobbed, trying to keep his own tears and fear at bay, but failing miserably. The couple comforted each other for a long while. A while later, Laura had completely cried herself out. She turned back to Frank and planted a soft kiss on his forehead. Fenton squeezed his hand and slowly, the dejected parents made their way out of the room.

Next up was Joe. After Fenton and Laura returned to the waiting room, Joe stood up shakily and made his way down to Frank's room. He paused outside the door and couldn't make up his mind on whether or not he should go see Frank or not.

An elderly nurse passing by looked over at him. She silently walked over to the brooding young man and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Are you alright honey?" She asked, motherly concern radiating off of each word.

Joe looked over at her and gave her a sad smile.

"I don't know if I can go in there. I can't help but feel like it's my fault he's in that room in the first place. A psychopath kidnapped him and now he's fighting for his life. I can't help but think that if I had gotten to him sooner, he wouldn't be in this position. I feel like it's my entire fault." Joe said brokenly, a single tear making its way down his cheek.

The nurse, Mary Ann, gently squeezed his shoulder. She had seen all types of injuries in the hospital in her 30 years of working there. All of the staff told her that she had a knack of comforting people in just the right way. _"Guess I should give it a try"_ Mary Ann thought.

"Oh honey, he would never blame you. The only person he would blame and the only person you should blame is the one that actually hurt him. But let me tell you something. You will hate yourself so much more if you don't see how he is with your own two eyes. I know exactly how you are feeling right now. About 15 years ago, my husband was in a fatal car accident. He was in a really bad shape and the doctors weren't sure if he would make it. Right before the accident, we had had a huge fight, and when I got the call from the hospital, all I could think was that this was my fault. I stood right outside his room just like this and contemplated about whether or not I should see him. I couldn't help but think that if I had stopped him, he wouldn't be in this position. But I told myself that if he was going to die, I wasn't going to let him die alone. I loved him and I knew that he loved me too." Mary Ann said, her voice getting softer with each word.

"Did he make it?"

Mary Ann smiled at Joe.

"Yes he did. And he's still going strong till this day. I look back at that day all the time and realize that if I hadn't seen him in his most vulnerable position, then I wouldn't be able to look him in the eye in his strongest position. Go visit your brother and you'll understand exactly what I mean." Mary Ann said, smiling at Joe's confused look.

Joe gave her a small smile and took a deep breath before reaching for the door handle and opening it.

He looked over at the prone position of his brother and tried to hold back his tears. He slowly made his way over to Frank's bedside and grasped his hand in his own. He let his tears fall as he dropped his head onto the bed.

"I'm so sorry Frank. I'm so sorry. I should have found you sooner. I am so _so_ sorry Frank. Please wake up bro. I need you. We all do." Joe said softly, tears racing down his cheeks.

Back in the waiting room, Nancy sat with Chloe's head resting in her lap, Nancy softly stroking her hair. Chloe raised her head and looked up at Nancy.

"Mommy, will Daddy be ok?"

Nancy froze and looked at her daughter.

"Of course he will sweetie. He's just a little hurt right now but you'll see. He will be okay in a few days. Then you and daddy can decorate the tree together like you wanted okay?" Nancy asked, trying to keep her voice from cracking.

Chloe could tell that something was not right, even though her mother was telling her that it was. She hadn't seen her daddy in days and really wanted to see him.

Nancy suddenly got up and ran to the bathroom, a hand clutching her mouth as she tried to keep from vomiting all over the hospital floor. Vanessa had just entered the waiting room when she saw Nancy bolt out, knowing exactly what had happened. She quickly squatted down in front of Chloe.

"Sweetie, I will go check on your mommy. I need you to go find Uncle Joe down there and stay with him okay?" Vanessa asked gently, pointing down towards the hall where Frank's room was.

Chloe nodded and made her way down the hall. Vanessa made sure that she was near Frank door before making her way after Nancy.

Chloe gently opened the door and saw her Uncle asleep with his head on the bed. She quietly made her way over to the other side of the bed and stood on her tiptoes. She grasped the edge of the bed with her fingers and pulled herself up a bit and saw the sleeping form of her father.

For a moment, Chloe was in complete shock. Her big strong daddy was looking extremely weak and frail. His arm was wrapped up in white bandages and something told her that touching it might hurt her daddy. She then saw her Uncle Joe holding her daddy's hand as he slept so she did the same. She gently grasped his large hand in her tiny one and whispered to him.

"Daddy, it's me. Will you wake up?" Chloe asked in a hushed tone, not wanting to wake up her uncle.

"Daddy, if you wake up, I promise I'll be a good girl. I'll never ask for more toys or candy or cookies. Now will you wake up?" Chloe asked hopefully. Her dad still didn't move a muscle.

Chloe then decided to take a different approach. She slowly climbed onto the bed, careful of Frank's arm and gently placed her head on Frank's torso and closed her eyes, listening to her father's heartbeat. She did this every time she was afraid or wanted her daddy to comfort her.

 _Flashback…_

 _Chloe was running in the dark, something chasing her. She kept running and running for what seemed like forever. She could hear wolves whistling in the night, tree branches breaking underneath her feet, and lightning kept lighting up the sky. She ran into an open clearing and looked around frantically._

" _Mommy! Where are you? Daddy! Somebody please help me! I'm scared!" Chloe cried in terror._

 _Suddenly everything was silent. The next thing Chloe saw was a bright flash of light and she woke up with a gasp._

 _Frank and Nancy looked down at their precious baby girl, concern written all over their faces. Chloe looked up at them with red and puffy eyes before launching herself into her mothers arms, sobs wracking her tiny body. Nancy tightly wrapped her arms around Chloe and slowly rocked her back and forth, whispering soothing words into her ear. Frank wrapped his arms around both of his girls and held them tight. After a while, Chloe had calmed down and slowly unraveled herself from her parents._

 _Nancy cupped her face with her hands and brushed back the tears leaking from her eyes._

" _What's wrong sweetie? Did you have a bad dream?" Nancy asked gently._

 _Chloe just nodded._

" _Do you want to talk about it princess?" Frank asked._

 _Chloe vigorously shook her head no._

" _Okay. How about some chocolate milk to help you sleep?" Nancy asked, knowing that chocolate milk always put her to sleep._

 _Chloe looked up with her big doe eyes and nodded._

" _And Oreos?" Chloe asked sheepishly._

 _Her parents smiled and her mother answered with a nod of her head._

 _Nancy made her way down to the kitchen to make some chocolate milk and get some Oreos while Frank stayed with Chloe._

 _Frank held Chloe in his arms as she shook with fear, memories of her nightmare coming back to her._

" _You're okay princess. I promise I won't let anything happen to you okay?" Frank said, placing a kiss to the top of Chloe's head. Chloe nodded and buried her face in her father's chest, already feeling much more safer. Chloe slowly closed her eyes and in a few moments fell asleep listening to the reassuring heartbeat of her father._

 _Frank felt Chloe's breathing slow and deepen, indicating that she was asleep. She was clutching onto him tightly so unwrapping her arms from around him was out of the question. Instead, he slowly positioned her onto himself and gently lowered them both onto the bed, Chloe resting her head on her father's chest. Frank gently ran his hand through her hair, loving the look of innocence on his baby girl's face. Slowly, the exhaustion began to creep up onto him and he felt his eyes droop. Soon, both father and daughter were out like a light._

 _A couple minutes later, Nancy came back up the stairs with a glass of warm chocolate milk in one hand and a plate of Oreos in another. She opened the door to Chloe's room and walked in. The sight of her husband and daughter curled up against each other brought a smile to her lips. She quickly and quietly deposited the Oreos and milk onto Chloe's bedside table and walked out of the room in search of her camera to capture the adorable father-daughter duo sleeping._

 _End of Flashback…_

Joe slowly awoke to a crick in his neck and to something tickling his hand. He quickly jerked up in his seat and looked around. His gaze dropped down to his unconscious brother and was surprised to see his niece asleep on Frank's chest. He smiled at the cuteness of it. Joe walked around to the other side of the bed and was about to pick up Chloe off of Frank when he heard the door open and Nancy and Vanessa walked in, Nancy looking a bit pale. Vanessa made a vomiting gesture and he immediately understood. The two females shifted their gaze over to the bed and they too smiled at the sight. Four year old Chloe clutching Frank's hand and was asleep on his chest. Nancy made her way over and placed a quick kiss on her forehead before making to pick her up. Joe quickly stopped her and began to pick Chloe up, shooting a glance down at Nancy's stomach before meeting her eyes. Nancy then remembered that she shouldn't be lifting anything heavy during her pregnancy. She shot Joe a grateful look before taking a step back.

Just as Joe was about to pick up the sleeping Chloe, the heart monitor beeped in a different manner. It showed Frank's heart beating faster. Nancy looked down at Frank and saw his fingers twitching.

"Get the doctor." Nancy ordered and Vanessa fled the room in search of the doctor.

"Frank, baby it's me Nan. Come on, open those eyes. Please?" Nancy asked, rubbing Frank's hand between her own.

Joe froze where he was and had his eyes on the monitor, watching as his brother's heart rate increased, signaling that he was waking up.

The doctor then came in and Joe picked Chloe up off of Frank. The second Chloe was off of Frank, Nancy and Joe saw Frank's eyes begin to flutter.

"Frank come on, it's time to wake up." Joe said as Nancy continued to hold his hand with one of her own while the other was gently rubbing Frank's cheek, willing him to wake up.

Frank felt like he was floating. All around him, there was white space. He could distantly hear voices. It sounded like Joe and Nancy. They wanted him to wake up. He wanted to wake up too. But something was holding him back. Suddenly, he heard a different voice. It was Chloe.

" _Daddy, it's me. Will you wake up?"_

Frank's heart melted at his daughter's words.

He could feel a strong force pull him back away from Chloe's voice. He fought against it, desperately trying to make his way towards Chloe's voice. After what seemed like forever, the force stopped pulling. Frank then began walking down a white-lit path towards his daughter's voice.

The next thing he was aware of was Nancy and Joe talking around him and something extremely uncomfortable in his throat. He tried talking but couldn't get anything out. Instead, he began coughing harshly and started choking.

"Frank, baby, listen to me. You have a breathing tube down your throat. You need to calm down so the doctor can pull it out ok. Please calm down."

Frank was vaguely aware of his wife's melodic voice telling him to calm down. He tried to steady his breathing and could then feel the doctor slowly pull the tube out of his throat. It hurt like a b****! That was his last coherent thought before sleep claimed him again.

Nancy and Joe looked on as the doctor pulled the breathing tube out of Frank's throat. He examined his vitals for a few more moments before turning back to them and smiling.

"Frank is going to be just fine." The doctor said.

Tears of joy poured out of Nancy's eyes as she collapsed against Joe. Joe held a sleeping Chloe in one arm and put his free one around Nancy's shoulder and hugging her close to him.

"He's going to be just fine." Joe whispered. His eyes drifted back to his brother's face and he smiled.

Color was starting to return to his face and he looked a lot less in pain than before.

Nancy and Joe both made their way over to Frank's bedside and sat, waiting for Frank to wake up. Chloe was still sleeping soundly in Joe's lap, happily sucking on her thumb.

 **AN: Well there you go! I think this is the longest chapter I've written :). Anyways, I hope you liked it. I'll probably add one-two more chapters to wrap this up. Also if you want to see an epilogue with the new baby then please do let me know (do you guys want it to be a boy or a girl :)!). Please review and tell me how you like it and what else you guys want in this story. Also, once again, I apologize for any medical discrepancies. I will probably finish this story before Thanksgiving so keep an eye out for it. :)**


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